Money WondersPlay

Bubbles, Scams & CrashesFraud

Red Flags of a Scam

Guaranteed, urgent, secret

Americans reported losing $15.9 billion to fraud in one year. Most scams wear the same few disguises. Could you spot them?

You'll find out

  • The word no real investment can promise
  • Why scammers rush you and hush you
  • The payments that are hardest to undo

Why it matters

Every scam needs you to act before you think. Knowing its signs gives you back the time it's trying to steal.

About 3 min6 interactive slides · 5 questionsLesson 130 · Zone 15

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More in this zone

  1. 127BubblesWhat a Bubble IsWhen prices float far above what things are worth
  2. 128FraudThe Ponzi ShapeOld investors are paid with new investors' money
  3. 129Crashes25 Years to Get BackThe Dow didn't reclaim its 1929 peak until 1954
  4. 131FraudSmart People Don't Get ScammedYoung adults report losing money to fraud more often than older ones
  5. 132Market ManipulationPump and DumpHype a stock, sell it to the crowd, disappear
  6. 133CrowdsTulip ManiaDutch traders bid single tulip bulbs up to fantasy prices, though the crash was smaller than the legend says
  7. 134HerdingFollowing the HerdWe trust a crowd even when it's wrong
  8. 135Fraud HistoryPonzi Wasn't FirstA Boston woman ran the same scheme 40 years earlier