Have you been targeted by a scam?

Researchers within the Centre for the Study of Behaviour Change and Influence at the University of the West of England in Bristol (UWE) are currently looking for volunteers to complete a brief online research survey regarding their experience of scams in order to investigate what factors make people more (or less) susceptible to scam communications.

In recent years, the range of ways in which people are able to communicate with each other and with wider society has expanded dramatically. From social media to instant messaging, e-mails to online shopping, the rapid advancement of online communication technology has resulted in an increase in opportunities for those with criminal intent to exploit them.

Scams are nothing new within human society, with multiple examples of trickery, deceit and manipulation demonstrated throughout history. With each new communication method that has emerged, use of these techniques as a means to con others out of money or personal information has soon followed. However, whilst traditional scams using post, phone or doorstep methods have continued, the advent of the Internet has made it much easier and cheaper for fraudsters to target large numbers of people across the globe quickly and anonymously.

Understanding the techniques that fraudster s use in scams, and how (and when) these persuade people that the scenario is genuine (or not), is increasingly important if people are to avoid scams in the future.   So, if you have fallen victim to a scam in the past or have received a scam communication but did not respond to it, whether online, face-to-face, through the post or over the phone, the researchers would like to hear from you!

The survey contains open-ended questions, but the data that you provide will be anonymous and following completion of the study, you will be provided with a written debrief regarding the project.

If you are interested in taking part or want to find out more please contact Dr Emma Williams at UWE’s Centre for the Study of Behaviour Change and Influence (e-mail: [email protected]😉 who will provide you with further information and a link and log-on details for the survey.

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