The Financial Crime Intelligence Program at the Middlebury Institute presents Scam Us If You Can. 

This series of talks will delve into how hackers and fraudsters exploit human psychology in carrying out imposter scams, mail and marketplace fraud, investment fraud, and romance fraud, and how AI is taking these crimes to a new level. Each session aims to equip you with the knowledge and tools to recognize and defend against these deceptive tactics, ensuring your financial and emotional security.

The topics for the four workshops are:

Wed, Nov 6 at 5:00 PM: How Hackers & Fraudsters Manipulate Us… (J. Lopata) 

Friday, Nov 8 at 1pm:  Defend Yourself Against Imposter Scams…  (S. Shah)  

Wednesday, Nov 13 at 5pm:  Stopping Mail, Check and Marketplace Fraud …(E. Drachman) 

 Friday, Nov 15 at 1pm: How AI is Transforming Online Scams…. (J. Losito)

First Workshop: How Hackers & Fraudsters Manipulate Us (Nov 6)

The most common cases of fraud are not the direct result of a sophisticated cybercriminal wielding advanced technology. Rather, criminals, oftentimes with little to no technical skills, weaponize deception and instrumentalize emotion in a skillfully crafted story to exploit the imperfect nature of human decision making. These criminals employ the right flavor of charm or the right kind of pressure, complemented with a façade of credibility, compelling you to entrust them with your financial and emotional well-being. This is known as social engineering, and it relies entirely on manipulating human behavior. This presentation will provide you the necessary tools to harden your defenses against emotional exploitation that leads to financial loss.

Space is limited. Registration is required.

Parking behind the library is limited.  Additional parking is available in the lot across the gulch to the right of the library.