1/ It is uniquely American to admire con artists, which is why we’ve put together some of this decade’s most memorable scams:
2/ The ease of shoplifting at self-scanning checkout lanes, Rene Chun wrote last year, is likely inspiring people who might not otherwise steal to do so. theatlantic.com/magazine/archi…
3/ According to Paul Campos, a close look at for-profit law schools in 2014 revealed perverse financial incentives that have potentially devastating consequences for young people. theatlantic.com/magazine/archi…
4/ To avoid college debt, @AdamHSays wrote that some parents turned over guardianship of their teenage children to less well-off friends or relatives so that they could qualify for financial aid: theatlantic.com/education/arch…
@AdamHSays 5/ The recent cryptocurrency gold rush was catnip for scammers. Why? Because the currencies aren’t not highly regulated, @davidzmorris wrote in 2017. theatlantic.com/technology/arc…
@AdamHSays @davidzmorris 6/ The easiest scam to execute on the internet, @quinnorton wrote in 2018, is phishing—it’s something a summer intern can learn to do in a couple of weeks. theatlantic.com/technology/arc…
@AdamHSays @davidzmorris @quinnorton 7/ More complicated scams can be successful, too: One man, @rachmonroe wrote in 2018, posed as a war hero, a surgeon, and an investment banker to charm women out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. theatlantic.com/magazine/archi…
@AdamHSays @davidzmorris @quinnorton @rachmonroe 8/ Legitimizing your social-media account is not easy. Verifications scams are so common, @TaylorLorenz wrote in June, because users constantly encounter seemingly nonfamous people with check marks—and figure that all you need to do to get one is pay. theatlantic.com/technology/arc…
@AdamHSays @davidzmorris @quinnorton @rachmonroe @TaylorLorenz 9/ So who can be trusted? Don’t count on your local fortune-teller. In recent years, @hilarygp wrote in 2014, landmark verdicts have convicted self-proclaimed psychics of crimes ranging from grand larceny to federal wire fraud: theatlantic.com/business/archi…
@AdamHSays @davidzmorris @quinnorton @rachmonroe @TaylorLorenz @hilarygp 10/ What happens after you’re caught? Some scam artists can find a purpose even behind bars. After being convicted of mortgage fraud, @RachMonroe wrote this year, Matthew Cox found a new niche: true-crime writing. theatlantic.com/magazine/archi…
@AdamHSays @davidzmorris @quinnorton @rachmonroe @TaylorLorenz @hilarygp 11/ Why are Americans so vulnerable to scams and prone to emulating con artists? Brooke Harrington has some theories: theatlantic.com/business/archi…
