Gone are the days when you can leave your doors open and go out or display your wares outside without monitoring it. People who are interested in buying will move closer, check the price tags, drop the money, carry their goods, and leave. If anyone dares try that in this present generation, I'm sure such a person will be full of regrets. That's how much the difference in how our forefathers are living then compared to this 21st century.
We can say a big thank you for the gift of technology from the scientists who have made things easier for us. This is one of the advantages we have now that was absent in the past; we can now sit in the comfort of our homes and purchase goods and then get them delivered to our doorsteps without us seeing who we are transacting business with. Every one of us appreciates the fact that technology has one way or the helped in the development of our world at large, although this precious gift also comes with pros and cons. At inception, we were enjoying it more, but that's when several other developments didn't take place, now artificial intelligence (AI) is gradually replacing humans, but then it is a good thing on the one hand, while it might be dangerous on the other hand, but that's a talk for another day.
One of the disadvantages of technology is its use for fraudulent acts, which has become rampant in our world today, especially in the part of the world where I belong. Everyone now sees working hard to achieve a set goal as a punishment and a long process, people are willing to take shortcuts to reach their desired successful destinations without having to work hard for it. This is where scamming and other fraudulent acts come into play, and which is degenerating and wreaking havoc in the world. It is not only affecting individuals, it is affecting the economy of the nations of the world. Scamming is what contributed to the problems we are facing in Nigeria presently.
HAVE I BEEN CAUGHT IN A SCAM?
When it comes to my monetary dealings, I've always been careful, doing lots of personal research and investigation before going into business with anyone, especially online, where I have no access to the so-called partner, but then one can't be safe all the time, at least not 100%. As careful as I am and still am, I've been scammed, and I lost a sum of #3000, it was huge money to me because I didn't have much with me then, and the money was for a customer which I had to refund immediately. When I started my clothing business, I preferred to go to a walk-in store to get my customer's orders, but then they didn't always have it all. Sometimes, it will demand me to place an order online from vendors that have it, and most times, these vendors are not residing where I am.
So it happened that a friend of mine demanded a heel shoe that I didn't have at hand. I checked with my offline vendors, and none of them had it; luckily for me, as I was scrolling through my Facebook account, I saw an online vendor who posted the exact type that I wanted. I chatted her up and she gave me her mobile number in case I needed to reach her while she was offline. I told her what I wanted and she promised to send the shoe the next morning of Ogbomoso while I paid. I made the transaction, and until the next morning, her number was still very much active and available. I called her in the morning around 10 am to inquire if she had sent it, I was told she would reach out to me once she sent it. Ogbomoso to Ilorin, where I reside, is just about 45 minutes; I kept waiting for her call when it was noon, and she didn't call, I tried to put a call through to her, and her number was switched off; I tried to reach her online via WhatsApp and shockingly she had blocked me. I knew then that I had been scammed, and without much stress, I had to quickly look for another money to pay back the customer whose money was made away with.
At that point, I was frustrated and disappointed. I couldn't believe I was just being duped, but then it is what it is. Since then, I have been more careful in dealing with people, especially online. If it had been a huge sum of money, it would have been disastrous because it would surely weigh me down. I've seen someone being scammed of #70,000 and some more than and I know how badly it affected them then. My dad was once scammed of #600,000, and at that time, we all felt the impact in the house; we all had to manage for some time before everything fell back into place. Some are now hypertension patients because of scammers who made away with their hard-earned money. Some fell into depression, while some lost their lives when they couldn't get back up to how they used to be.
WAYS TO STAY SAFE
Being safe 100% isn't sure, but not falling victim to this fraudster and scammers, the best way is to be always sure of the sources one is getting information from before dealing with them, especially when it is financially related. Engage in personal research; the problem we are having in this part of the world, Africa to be precise, is that we don't read. We find reading so difficult, and some treasures are embedded in books and research, but when we don't engage ourselves in it, how do we want to maximize the opportunities it provides? We would have wished to get rid of scammers and their activities but that would be a bit difficult because the more technology advances, the more pros and cons we would face.
Thanks for your time, and your comments will be appreciated.
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