A few months ago, I nearly fell for a classic FOMO scam and while I got my money back, it reminded me how easy it is to get influenced by something that seems legit.

The warranty on our car had expired. It was actually the 2nd warranty, and the car was six years old.

We were then referred to an outside service to see if we wanted to re-signup for the warranty.

I called the number we were given. While I was on the call just doing an inquiry, they quoted me the price, and I said I needed to think about it and talk to my wife.

They said "Sure, no problem, but we can't guarantee the price you'll pay as it may change the next time we talk, and you'll likely pay more."

That got me - FOMO: the Fear Of Missing Out.

So silly me, I signed up. But I did cancel it later when I did the financial analysis and got all my money back.

I bring this up because it's SO easy to get influenced by an email, phone call, or text that seems legit.

I know someone who's had his online profile used so much that scammers have gotten over $1M from it!

So how do we protect ourselves?

I recently ran across a Consumer Reports article that told stories of people who were scammed, and I'll reference some of that here, but I'll give you other tips that may be tried and true for you, and some others that may be new to you.

• Pay by electronic check or online if at all possible. People can steal the mail and whitewash the amount and payee, changing something like a $50 check to a $5000 check. Note that you can get more secure checks if you wish, but I'm still wary of them as it requires the person that cashes the check to know these secure marks and recognize changes to them.
• Make sure your financial accounts have unique passwords, and make them long and random so they are hard to guess. If you want to be even more secure, change them every three months.
• Use Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for your important accounts. It's best to use an app on your phone for the code but at least have a code texted to you.
• Use a password manager, please, and don't write your passwords down or keep them in a spreadsheet where someone can get to them after stealing your computer or phone! We use 1Password and it's always been awesome for us, and we can save our 2FA codes in it. But there are several others that are excellent as well.
• Run some anti-virus type software on your computer - it will catch keyloggers and such.
• Don't click on links in emails from people you don't recognize. In fact, look at the link and see if it is a link that makes sense to you. Remember, with AI, emails are getting better and better at looking and sounding legitimate, and you'll definitely be tempted.
• Be careful with QR codes in public places. Scammers can paste their own QR codes over them and thus change the link you connect to. The more sophisticated ones will make the link you go to look legitimate.
• Balance your important bank accounts regularly and know what every charge is. If you don't recognize it, contact your bank.
• If you get a call or an email from your bank telling you there's something you need to do, hang up and call them back yourself using a number that you know, or log into your account yourself. Anyone who calls, don't give them personal information.
• Sometimes people will call you claiming that they are someone you know (e.g., a family member), are in trouble, and need you to wire some money fast. While there's an outside possibility this is true, come up with a family passcode, or some facts that only they will know about you.
• Scammers will want you to act fast, or cause you to want to act fast to get the best "deal". While my story wasn't a scammer (I called them at the beginning which is what you should be doing), FOMO got me.
• Finally, slow down and think, and if you're suspicious about something, ask someone you trust; you can always email us or contact us if you want to know if something may be legit.

I hope these tips help to keep you safe, and please continue to be diligent online!

~Dave