Turning the Tables on Scammers: Behavioral Strategies to Disrupt Victimization

Scammers manipulate victims by playing on their psychology, using victims’ emotions and biases against them. Financial organizations must do more than educate consumers about scam risk if they want to protect them. Building a scam strategy that targets psychological SAFETY factors across the scam lifecycle is an important way that organizations can level up their fight against scams.

Join behavioral scientists Kelly Peters and Michelle Hilscher, PhD, as they share lessons learned from their work with a leading Canadian bank about how to use behavioral tactics to interrupt scam victimization and ultimately, prevent scam losses.

Michelle and Kelly will share how their behavioral scam management strategy pilot:

1. Converted agent-customers calls from transactional to collaborative so customers were more open and willing to listen.
2. Leveraged the principle of “perspective-taking” so victims were better at spotting warning signs and red flags.
3. Used social proof to lessen victims’ shame and feelings of isolation.