Is this a scam?

One page for each scam that AI is making more convincing. Each one starts with the check: a few yes-or-no questions you can answer in a minute, at midnight, before you send anything.

• A famous face is telling you to invest. Is it real?
  Almost certainly a scam: real celebrities and officials don't sell investments in ads, livestreams or private messages.
• Your boss needs an urgent favor: gift cards or a secret transfer. Stop and check.
  Very likely a scam: real managers don't ask for gift card numbers, and an urgent, secret transfer needs checking on a channel you already trust, even after a video call.
• Someone you met online wants to help you invest. Read this first.
  Almost certainly a scam: the FTC says that if someone you met online offers to help you invest in crypto, it's an investment scam.
• About to scan a QR code to pay? Check it first.
  Be suspicious of any QR code stuck on a meter or sent unexpectedly; pay through the machine, the official app or a web address you type yourself.
• A job that pays you to like videos or rate products, then asks you to deposit money? It's a scam.
  A scam if they ever ask you to pay: the FTC says never pay to get a job or to get paid.
• 'Your account is compromised, move your money now.' Hang up.
  A scam: the FTC says anyone telling you to move money to 'protect it' or asking for a verification code is a scammer, even if they say they're from your bank.
• Someone has a fake explicit image of you and wants money. You can get through this.
  This is a crime against you, not something you did wrong: don't pay, stop replying, save the evidence and get help now.
• Great reviews, a great price, a shop you've never heard of. Check before you pay.
  Possibly a scam: glowing reviews and a slick site prove little, so check the seller elsewhere and pay only by credit card.
• You searched for a company's phone number. Did you get a scammer?
  Treat any number you didn't get from the company's own website, app, bill or card as suspect. If the 'agent' asks for gift cards, a wire, crypto, your password or remote access, it's a scam.
• 'This is the IRS, the FBI, the police.' Is it really?
  A scam if they demand payment or personal information: the FBI says officials never contact the public by phone or text to demand payment, and never ask for prepaid cards, crypto or a courier.
• Someone says they can get back the money you lost. Can they?
  A scam if they want money up front: the FTC says government agencies and legitimate organizations never charge to help you get a refund, and the FBI says law enforcement never charges victims to investigate.
• A heartbreaking disaster photo and a donate button. Is it real?
  Often a scam if the appeal is new, came to you through social media, a text or an email, and you can't verify the charity. Give to organizations you know, through their own website.
• A real doctor seems to recommend a miracle pill. Did they?
  Almost certainly fake if a doctor in a social media ad or video promises a cure, a GLP-1 'alternative' or a reason to quit your medication. Check with your own doctor before buying anything, and never stop prescribed treatment because of a video.
• An 'AI trading bot' that can't lose. Is it real?
  A scam if it guarantees returns or a near-perfect win rate: the CFTC says AI can't predict the future or sudden market changes, and the SEC, NASAA and FINRA warn about claims like 'our AI trading system can't lose'.
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Spot an error or something out of date? Tell us; corrections are made and logged. Written with AI assistance from public sources; every fact checked and approved by Colin Balfe. General information, not legal, medical or financial advice.