Investing is risky enough without worrying about whether your salesperson is going to fleece you. Be an informed investor, and know the warning signs to look out for. Some are subtle, and some are easier to spot. Con Artists Like To Blend In To be effective con artists must disguise their true motives. They will take great pains to look and sound familiar. They may try to reach you by joining your sports team, church or other association, and use the trust and common bond they build to spread the word about their questionable business dealings and reel in unsuspecting investors. Con Artists Dress For Success While a con artists wants you to believe that they are “just plain folk,” they’re also smart enough to realize that if they want you to part with your money, they must appear as smooth, professional and successful. They may dress like they are wealthy and work out of impressive looking offices. Your best bet is to look behind the surface and do some serious investigating before you part with your money. Con Artists Bring Out The Worst In You Skilled con artists can bring out your worst traits: greed, fear, and insecurity. They will try to make you feel inadequate if you don’t believe them or ask too many questions. They know that promises of huge returns with no risk will get your attention; they hope that it will get your money too. Con Artists Are Fair Weather Friends Before you invest, con artists are very friendly. They take a personal interest in you, call back when promised, always eager to tell you more good things about the investment. Once you have given them your money, things change, quickly. Personal contact dwindles and then stops altogether. If you can’t get answers to your questions after handing over your cash, there is a good chance someone else is getting rich off of your investment. Con Artists Want You to Act Now If you are promised high, guaranteed profits and given no written explanation of the investment, the promoter’s background or the risks involved, walk away. Never invest in anything based on the enthusiasm or charisma of the salesperson—they may have more to gain by taking your money than you know. Con Artists Focus on the Silver Lining in the Storm Every investment involves risk. But to hear the con artist explain it, you can’t lose. Be especially careful if the salesperson downplays any downside or denies that risk exists. Don’t let a con artist steal your pot of gold. Large or small, you worked hard for that! Related posts:All that glitters… Beware of gold investing scams The soaring price of gold has sparked a modern-day gold...“Boiler room” scams: Could you be vulnerable? Have you received an unsolicited phone call about an investment...Affinity Fraud: How it works & how to avoid it Beware of swindlers who claim loyalty to your group In...Investment Fraud Checklist Most investing scams have some common warning signs that are...Types of Investment Scams New types of investment scams appear every day. However, most...Share & Bookmark This Story! Bookmark on Delicious StumbleUpon Google BookmarksTip'd...