Questions:

• What steps can you take to prevent your email account from being compromised? 
• Why do you think that romance scams are so pervasive? 
• Do you know anyone who has been the victim of any of these frauds? Explain what happened. 

Here's the ready-to-go slides for this Question of the Day that you can use in your classroom.

Behind the numbers (Priceonomics):

Forty percent of online fraud losses are the result of Email Compromise, sometimes referred to as Business Email Compromise (BEC) or Email Account Compromise (EAC). This fraud targets mostly businesses that regularly perform wire transfers. This type of fraud involves sending fake invoices to companies with the hope they are erroneously paid.

If you work in the accounting department of a company or regularly pay bills, be aware your inbox may not be what it seems. Hackers can very easily pose as trusted vendors or even spoof email addresses of your co-workers with relative ease. 

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About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.