View source for Scam

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{{Short description|Attempt to defraud a person or group}}
{{For-multi|the 2016 film|Confidence Game|counterfeits|Counterfeit consumer goods|}}
{{Other uses|Con Man (disambiguation){{!}}Con Man|Con artist (disambiguation)|Scam (disambiguation)}}
{{Redirect-distinguish|Scamming|Spamming}}
[[File:A Confidence Trick - JM Staniforth.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Political cartoon by [[Joseph Morewood Staniforth|{{Nowrap|J. M.}} Staniforth]]: [[Herbert Kitchener]] attempts to raise £100,000 for a college in Sudan by calling on the name of [[Charles George Gordon|{{Nowrap|C. G.}} Gordon]]]]
A '''scam''', or a '''confidence trick''', is an attempt to [[defraud]] a person or group after first gaining their [[Trust (emotion)|trust]]. Confidence tricks exploit victims using a combination of the victim's [[credulity]], [[naivety]], [[compassion]], [[vanity]], [[confidence]], [[Moral responsibility|irresponsibility]], and [[greed]]. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators at the expense of their victims (the '[[Traveling carnival#Games|marks]]')".<ref name=Huang18>{{cite journal |first1=Lindsey |last1=Huang |first2=Barak |last2=Orbach |title=Con Men and Their Enablers: The Anatomy of Confidence Games |journal=Social Research: An International Quarterly |year=2018 |volume=85 |issue=4 |pages=795–822 |doi=10.1353/sor.2018.0050 |s2cid=150021652 |url=https://ssrn.com/abstract=3228077 |access-date=2018-09-03 |archive-date=2023-01-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115101852/https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3228077 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Terminology==
Other terms for "scam" include confidence trick, con, con game, confidence game, confidence scheme, ripoff, stratagem, finesse, grift, hustle, bunko, bunco, swindle, flimflam, gaffle, and bamboozle.

The perpetrator is often referred to as a '''scammer''', '''confidence man''', '''con man''', '''con artist''', '''[[wikt:grifter|grifter]]''', '''hustler''', or '''swindler'''. The intended victims are known as marks, suckers, stooges, mugs, rubes, or gulls (from the word ''gullible''). When accomplices are employed, they are known as [[shill]]s.<ref>{{harvnb|Maurer|1999|loc=Ch. 9. The Con Man and His Lingo}}</ref>

==Length==
{{Anchor|short con|Short con|small con|Small con}}A ''short con'' or ''small con'' is a fast swindle that takes just minutes, possibly seconds. It typically aims to rob the victim of their money or other valuables that they carry on their person or are guarding.<ref>{{harvnb|Maurer|1999|loc=Ch. 8. Short-Con Games}}</ref> {{Anchor|long con|Long con|big con|Big con|long game|Long game}}A ''long con'' or ''big con'' (also, chiefly in British English, ''long game'')<ref name="NOOB">{{cite web|url=http://britishisms.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/the-long-game/ |title=The long game|last=Yagoda|first=Ben |work=Not One-off Britishisms|date=June 5, 2012|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140707084040/http://britishisms.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/the-long-game/ |archive-date=July 7, 2014}} This language blog, while not a reliable etymological source, provides statistically gathered usage data that demonstrates neutral as well as critical usage, and that it is of British origin, only recently making notable inroads into American English.</ref> is a scam that unfolds over several days or weeks; it may involve a team of swindlers, and even props, sets, extras, costumes, and scripted lines. It aims to rob the victim of a huge amount of money or other valuables, often by getting them to empty out banking accounts and borrow from family members.<ref>{{harvnb|Reading|2012|loc=Ch. 1. Confidence}}</ref>

==History==
The [[shell game]] dates back at least to [[ancient Greece]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Shell Game|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/539702/shell-game|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714065828/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/539702/shell-game |archive-date=2011-07-14 }}</ref> [[William Thompson (confidence man)|William Thompson]] (1821–1856) was the original "confidence man". Thompson was a clumsy swindler who asked his victims to express confidence in him by giving him money or their watch rather than gaining their confidence in a more nuanced way. A few people trusted Thompson with their money and watches.<ref name=Braucher15>{{cite journal |first1=Jean |last1=Braucher |first2=Barak |last2=Orbach  |title=Scamming: The Misunderstood Confidence Man |journal=Yale Journal of Law & the Humanities |year=2015 |volume=72 |issue=2 |pages=249–292  |doi=10.2139/ssrn.2314071 |s2cid=148270133 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Thompson was arrested in July 1849. Reporting on this arrest, James Houston, a reporter for the ''[[New York Herald]]'', publicized Thompson by naming him the "Confidence Man".<ref name=Braucher15/> Although Thompson was an unsuccessful scammer, he gained a reputation as a genius operator mostly because Houston's satirical tone was not understood as such.<ref name=Braucher15 /> The ''[[National Police Gazette]]'' coined the term "confidence game" a few weeks after Houston first used the name "confidence man".<ref name=Braucher15 />

==Stages==
In ''Confessions of a Confidence Man'', Edward H. Smith lists the "six definite steps or stages of growth" of a confidence game.<ref name="smith">{{cite book |first=Edward H. |last=Smith |title=Confessions of a Confidence Man: A Handbook for Suckers |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Cyq8QAAACAAJ |year=1923 |publisher=Scientific American Publishing |pages=35–37 |access-date=2015-11-07 |archive-date=2023-01-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115101905/https://books.google.com/books?id=Cyq8QAAACAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> He notes that some steps may be omitted. It is also possible some can be done in a different order than below, or carried out simultaneously.

;Foundation work
:Preparations are made in advance of the game, including the hiring of any assistants required and studying the background knowledge needed for the role.
;Approach
:The victim is approached or contacted.
;Build-up
:The victim is given an opportunity to profit from participating in a scheme. The victim's greed is encouraged, such that their rational judgment of the situation might be impaired.
;Pay-off or convincer
:The victim receives a small payout as a demonstration of the scheme's purported effectiveness. This may be a real amount of money or faked in some way (including physically or electronically). In a [[gambling]] con, the victim is allowed to win several small bets. In a [[stock market]] con, the victim is given fake [[dividend]]s.
;The "hurrah"
:A sudden manufactured crisis or change of events forces the victim to act or make a decision immediately. This is the point at which the con succeeds or fails. With a financial scam, the con artist may tell the victim that the "window of opportunity" to make a large investment in the scheme is about to suddenly close forever.
;The in-and-in
:A conspirator (in on the con, but assumes the role of an interested bystander) puts an amount of money into the same scheme as the victim, to add an appearance of legitimacy. This can reassure the victim, and give the con man greater control when the deal has been completed.

In addition, some games require a "[[corroboration]]" step, particularly those involving a fake, but purportedly "rare item" of "great value". This usually includes the use of an accomplice who plays the part of an uninvolved (initially skeptical) third party, who later confirms the claims made by the con man.<ref name="smith"/>

=== In a Long Con ===
Alternatively, in ''The Big Con'', David Maurer writes that all cons "progress through certain fundamental stages" and that there are ten stages for a "''big con''."<ref name=":0">{{Harvnb|Maurer|1999|loc=Ch. 1. A Word About Confidence Men}}</ref>

# Locating and investigating a well-to-do victim. (Putting the mark up.)
# Gaining the victim’s confidence. (Playing the con for him.)
# Steering him to meet the insideman. (Roping the mark.)
# Permitting the insideman to show him how he can make a large amount of money dishonestly. (Telling him the tale.)
# Allowing the victim to make a substantial profit. (Giving him the convincer.)
# Determining exactly how much he will invest. (Giving him the breakdown.)
# Sending him home for this amount of money. (Putting him on the send.)
# Playing him against a big store and fleecing him. (Taking off the touch.)
# Getting him out of the way as quietly as possible. (Blowing him off.)
# Forestalling action by the law. (Putting in the fix.)

==Vulnerability factors==
Confidence tricks exploit  characteristics such as [[Greed (emotion)|greed]],<ref name=":0" /> [[dishonesty]], [[vanity]], [[opportunism]], [[lust]], [[compassion]], [[credulity]], [[moral responsibility|irresponsibility]], [[panic|desperation]], and [[naïvety]]. As such, there is no consistent profile of a confidence trick victim; the common factor is simply that the victim relies on the good faith of the con artist. Victims of [[securities fraud|investment scams]] tend to show an incautious level of greed and gullibility, and many con artists target the elderly and other people thought to be vulnerable, using various forms of confidence tricks.<ref>[http://www.crimes-of-persuasion.com/Victims/victims.htm Crimes-of-persuasion.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070415230029/http://www.crimes-of-persuasion.com/Victims/victims.htm |date=2007-04-15 }} ''Fraud Victim Advice / Assistance for Consumer Scams and Investment Frauds''</ref> Researchers Huang and Orbach argue:<ref name=Huang18/>
{{blockquote|Cons succeed for inducing judgment errors—chiefly, errors arising from [[Asymmetric information|imperfect information]] and [[cognitive bias]]es. In popular culture and among professional con men, the human vulnerabilities that cons exploit are depicted as "dishonesty", "greed", and "gullibility" of the marks. Dishonesty, often represented by the expression "you can't cheat an honest man", refers to the willingness of marks to participate in unlawful acts, such as rigged gambling and embezzlement. Greed, the desire to "get something for nothing", is a shorthand expression of marks' beliefs that too-good-to-be-true gains are realistic. Gullibility reflects beliefs that marks are "suckers" and "fools" for entering into costly voluntary exchanges. Judicial opinions occasionally echo these sentiments.}}

== Online fraud ==
{{see also|Internet fraud}}
Fraud has rapidly adapted to the Internet. The [[Internet Crime Complaint Center]] (IC3) of the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] received 847,376 reports in 2021 with a reported loss of money of $6.9 billion in the US alone.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Internet Crime Report, 2021 |url=https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2021_IC3Report.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322182942/https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2021_IC3Report.pdf |archive-date=2022-03-22 |url-status=live |website=Internet Crime Complaint Center, FBI}}</ref> The Global Anti Scam Alliance annual Global State of Scam Report, stated that globally $47.8 billion was lost and the number of reported scams increased from 139 million in 2019 to 266 million in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Greening |first=James |date=2021-12-07 |title=Scammers are Winning: € 41.3 ($ 47.8) Billion lost in Scams, up 15% |url=https://www.gasa.org/post/scammers-are-winning-41-3-47-8-billion-lost-in-scams-up-15 |access-date=2022-05-19 |website=GASA |language=en |archive-date=2022-05-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220517001559/https://www.gasa.org/post/scammers-are-winning-41-3-47-8-billion-lost-in-scams-up-15 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Government organizations have set up online fraud reporting websites to build awareness about online scams and help victims make reporting of online fraud easier. Examples are in the United States (FBI IC3, [[Federal Trade Commission]]), Australia (ScamWatch  [[Australian Competition and Consumer Commission v Baxter Healthcare Pty Ltd|ACCC]]), Singapore (ScamAlert<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.scamalert.sg/|title=ScamAlert - Bringing you the latest scam info|website=Default|accessdate=May 3, 2023}}</ref>), United Kingdom ([[National Fraud Intelligence Bureau|ActionFraud]]), Netherlands (FraudeHelpdesk<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fraudehelpdesk.nl/|title=Home|website=www.fraudehelpdesk.nl|accessdate=May 3, 2023}}</ref>). In addition, several private, non-profit initiatives have been set up to combat online fraud like [[Artists Against 419|AA419]] (2004), [[Anti-Phishing Working Group|APWG]] (2004) and ScamAdviser (2012).

==In popular culture==
* ''[[The Grifters (novel)|The Grifters]]'' is a noir fiction novel by [[Jim Thompson (writer)|Jim Thompson]] published in 1963. It was adapted into [[The Grifters (film)|a film of the same name]], directed by [[Stephen Frears]] and released in 1990. Both have characters involved in either short con or long con.
* ''[[The Sting]]'' is a 1973 American film directed by [[George Roy Hill]] largely concerned with a long con.

==See also==<!-- Please respect alphabetical order -->
{{Columns-list|colwidth=30em|
* [[Advance-fee scam]]
* [[Badger game]]
* [[Boiler room (business)]]
* [[Catfishing]]
* [[Charlatan]]
* [[Confidence tricks in film and television]]
* [[Confidence tricks in literature]]
* [[Counterfeit]]
* ''[[Elmer Gantry]]'' (novel) – fictional religious cons
* [[Gaslighting]]
* [[Graft (politics)|Graft]]
* [[Hijacked journal]]s
* [[List of con artists]]
* [[List of scams]]
* [[Phishing]]
* [[Pig butchering scam]]
* [[Quackery]]
* [[Racketeering]]
* [[Ripoff]]
* [[Scam baiting]]
* [[Scams in intellectual property]]
* [[Social engineering (security)]]
* [[SSA impersonation scam]]
* [[Technical support scam]]
* [[White-collar crime]]
}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite book|last=Bell |first=J. Bowyer |author2=Whaley, Barton |year=1982 |title=Cheating and Deception (reprint 1991) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ojmwSoW8g7IC |publisher=Transaction Publishers |isbn=978-0887388682}}
* {{Cite book|last=Blundell |first=Nigel |orig-year=1982 |title=The World's Greatest Crooks and Conmen and other mischievous malefactors |publisher=Octopus Books |year=1984 |isbn=978-0706421446}}
* {{Cite book|last=Dillon |first=Eamon |orig-year=2008 |title=The Fraudsters: Sharks and Charlatans – How Con Artists Make Their Money |publisher=Merlin Publishing |year=2008 |isbn=978-1903582824}}
* {{Cite book|last=Ford |first=Charles V. |orig-year=1999 |title=Lies! Lies!! Lies!!!: The Psychology of Deceit |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_FSc5C2bFYUC |publisher=American Psychiatric |year=1999 |isbn=978-0880489973}}
*{{cite book|last=Harper |first=Kimberly |title=Men of No Reputation: Robert Boatright, the Buckfoot Gang, and the Fleecing of Middle America |url=https://books.google.com/books/about/Men_of_No_Reputation.html?id=zpbvEAAAQBAJ |publisher=University of Arkansas Press  |year=2025 |isbn=9781682262450}}
* {{Cite book|last=Henderson |first=Les |title=Crimes of Persuasion: Schemes, scams, frauds |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-aJ8d_oewg8C |publisher=Coyote Ridge |year=2000 |isbn=978-0968713303}}
* {{Cite book|last=Kaminski |first=Marek M. |year=2004 |title=Games Prisoners Play |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YIGzIaNmokgC |location=Princeton |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0691117218}}
* {{Cite book|title=The Confidence Game: Why We Fall for It...Every Time |last=Konnikova |first=Maria |year=2016 |publisher=Viking |isbn=978-0525427414 }}
* {{Cite book|author1=Lazaroff, Steven |author2=Rodger, Mark |orig-year=2018 |title=History's Greatest Deceptions and Confidence scams |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pf_NtQEACAAJ |publisher=Rodger & Laz Publishing S.E.N.C.  |year=2018 |isbn=978-1775292128}}
* {{Cite book|last=Maurer |first=David W. |orig-year=1940 |year=1999 |title=The Big Con: The Story of the Confidence Man and the Confidence Game |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jxbbV5x66usC |publisher=Bobbs Merrill / Anchor Books |isbn=978-0385495387 }}
* {{Cite book|last=Maurer |first=David W. |year=1974 |title=The American Confidence Man |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W6twAAAACAAJ |location=Springfield |publisher=Charles C. Thomas, Publisher |isbn=978-0398029746}}
* {{Cite book|last=Reading |first=Amy |year=2012 |title=The Mark Inside: A Perfect Swindle, a Cunning Revenge, and a Small History of the Big Con |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=skV3BGg-znYC |publisher=Knopf |isbn=978-0307473592 }}
* {{Cite book|last=Smith |first=Jeff |year=2009 |title=Soapy Smith: The Life and Death of a Scoundrel |url=http://www.soapysmith.net/id50.html |publisher=Klondike Research |location=Juneau |isbn=978-0981974309}}
* {{Cite book|last=Sutherland |first=Edwin Hardin |year=1937 |title=The Professional Thief (reprint 1989) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=muZuPt327pwC |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0226780511}}
* {{Cite book|last=Weil |first=J.R. "Yellow Kid" |year=1948 |orig-year=2004 |title=Con Man: A Master Swindler's Own Story |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wScQOATAjMMC&q=con+man+yellow+kid+weil |publisher=Broadway Books|isbn=978-0767917377}}
* {{Cite book|last=Zhang |first=Yingyu |year=2017 |title=The Book of Swindles: Selections from a Late Ming Collection |url=https://cup.columbia.edu/book/the-book-of-swindles/9780231178631 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0231178631}}

==External links==
* {{Wikivoyage inline}}
* {{Commons category-inline}}
* {{cite web |website= The Lost Museum, ([[George Mason University|GMU]]) |url= https://lostmuseum.cuny.edu/archive/arrest-of-the-confidence-man-newyork-herald |title= Arrest of the Confidence Man |publisher= [[New York Herald]] |series= Police Intelligence |date= July 8, 1849 }}
* {{cite web<!--Deny Citation Bot-->|url=http://www.chinafile.com/library/books/book-of-swindles|website=ChinaFile|title=Book of Swindles|date=2017-11-15}} Confidence tricks in China.
* {{cite web|url=https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/prepaid-funeral-scam|website=FBI.gov|title=Prepaid funeral scam}}
* {{cite news|url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17697615/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070324001555/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17697615 |url-status=dead|archive-date=2007-03-24|work=[[Dateline NBC]] investigation |title=To Catch a Con Man}}

{{fraud}}
{{Corruption}}
{{Manipulation (psychology)}}
{{Scams and confidence tricks}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Confidence tricks| ]]
[[Category:Psychological manipulation]]
[[Category:Fraud]]
[[Category:Organized crime activity]]
[[Category:Compassion]]