What Is Fraud?
What Is Fraud? What Are the Risks?
Fraud is a broad legal term that refers to situations where someone is intentionally dishonest in order to receive some kind of benefit from a person, business, or entity.
The goal of fraud is almost always money or financial gain. But that’s not the only reason someone will try to defraud you or your business. They could also want special services or treatments you wouldn’t normally give them.
Fraudsters can use outright deception to try and trick you into giving them what they want. Or, they might use misrepresentation and leave out critical information during applications. They could even pretend to be someone else, as in identity theft.
Fraud covers a wide range of different scams and crimes. But almost all examples of fraud fall under two categories:
- Business fraud occurs when customers, employees, or investors scam your business out of money or services.
- Personal fraud occurs when another person, group, or company tricks you into giving up money, services, or sensitive information that can be used for identity theft.
Both types of fraud can be devastating. But let’s start by looking at the most common fraud examples you’ll face in your personal life.
12 Examples of Personal Fraud (and How To Identify Them)
- Identity theft
- Imposter scams (phishing attacks)
- Credit card and debit card fraud
- Mortgage and loan fraud
- Fake check scams
- Employment scams
- Online fraud and malware
- Advance fee scams
- Ponzi schemes and investment fraud
- Tax refund fraud
- Healthcare fraud (medical identity theft)
- Cryptocurrency fraud
Personal fraud hits hard. To avoid financial losses, be on the lookout for these types of fraud. For Recovery options of being a victim of a scam, Contact Us
