Planet Money Breaks Down the Work From Home Scam

Today’s must-listen—or, if you don’t have time, today’s “must read the transcript”—comes from Planet Money.
Episode 680: Anatomy Of A Scam
I have often wondered who calls those numbers on the little white signs tacked next to busy intersections. I mean, you’d have to stop the car long enough to either write the number down or take a picture of the sign, right?
Or, when you see one of those blog comments assuring us that MY COUSIN EARNS $5,000 A WEEK WORKING FROM HOME—who reads those and decides to contact the company?
A lot of people, as it turns out; many of them older, and many of them desperate. Not all work from home scams are the same, but Planet Money gives us a real-life example of one of the more popular scams, using a recorded call from a man who identifies himself as “Blake Cantor” and a woman they dub “Doris:”
CANTOR: Now, how many hours a week do you think you’re going to invest in this business?
DORIS: Five to eight hours a day.
CANTOR: Really? That’s fantastic. OK — because investing as little as 10 hours a week, OK, can potentially generate a six-figure income. So I mean, as long as you dedicate…
DORIS: Maybe I’ll get a seven.
(LAUGHTER)
CANTOR: Let’s hope.
The goal of these calls, of course, isn’t to help Doris set up a business. It’s to take as much money from her as possible. Blake Cantor begins to probe Doris about her assets, including her mortgage, her car loan, her savings account, and her checking account. Then he asks Doris to give him her credit card information, so she can make a one-time payment of $4,785 and a recurring payment of $49.95 a month.
Now that Doris is on the hook, the “support calls” begin, and Doris is invited to take out a business loan—which she does. She never starts a business, of course. All she does is talk to people on the phone, listen to their promises, and give them her money.
When you call one of those numbers, whether you see a sign on the side of the road or see a job listing online, you get a call center of people employing scripts designed to break down your objections and earn your trust. What you don’t get is a job.
It’s a sad story, but it’s also one that’s well worth the listen.
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