Today’s global market is full of risks of scam and fraud. Online criminals emerge every second, presenting themselves as a suitable and attractive option to investors seeking new opportunities. Their experience and resources allow them to grow, to improve their tactics and to make it harder to recognize the fraud. If you’re investing overseas or with an unknown party, and you have no reliable information to guarantee your money is safe, then your investment is at risk!

Investment scams (as most scams) happen mainly because people lacked evidence, did not conduct an international due diligence, and yet they still decided to go forward with a deal. No one wants to put their money at risk, but when presented with a great opportunity people tend to overrate the excitement of a good return and put aside their notion of caution.  This nearly always ends in disaster.  Exercising caution is the first step to be safe in any investment consideration.

Investments scams happen to smart people who didn’t verify

Investment fraud is no longer only conducted by isolated individuals who want to take advantage of naive investors. It is a meticulous and organized crime happening on a big scale. Recently, a large scale online fraud operation was dismantled by the Philippines police, leading to the arrest of almost five hundred people. The criminals worked out of a call center under the noses of local authorities, luring victims into investing in foreign stocks in a “flourishing” London-based company  and then taking their money through an online app after obtaining their bank account and credit card details. Victims were from many different countries, and they all thought it seemed too real to search any deeper. Do not to go by the package and verify!

The first step of due diligence

For any investor, making sure a company -or an individual claiming to represent a company- is legitimate is the first step. Verifying individuals and companies in other countries requires the skills and resources of an experienced international investigation company. Thorough investigations are key to a business’s sustainability and strengthen the risk management strategy. The same applies to individual investors. Professional investigators can verify a company’s registration records, if they are in good standing with the authorities, if the operation is reputable and if the people who are in charge are in fact the same contacting you for an investment. Due diligence is a must, not a luxury.

Before considering putting your money in

Be skeptical when you receive an offer.  If it seems too good to be true it probably is!  A wise investment  opportunity should not be an emergency that need to be taken care of immediately without time to think it through.  Take your time and don’t be pressured into anything.  If you feel rushed or pressured, take a day or two to think about the situation carefully, and to contact a professional who can help.   A safe investment will not have an incredible yield and it will not make you rich from one day to another. Currently, criminals are being more moderate with their offers to avoid suspicions so even if the offer seems reasonable, be skeptical.  In many cases, there is no way to verify the information being presented without the help of a trained international investigator.

Verify your contact as well. No one doubts about the existence of reputable global companies, but if you´re being offered shares of a company you are absolutely sure is real, then what you need to check is the person who is offering them. Is this person an employee, a certified stock broker, or a legal representative who is truly affiliated with the company, or licensed to operate?  If you’re presented with documents, consult a private investigation company to verify the authenticity of these documents before signing or providing your personal information.

Many companies and investors are turning to private investigators who specialize in international due diligence for big company deals, especially franchises, mergers and acquisitions. Individual investors can go the same path too to be safe. Investigators with global reach and local expertise can help.

Contact us for international due diligence before making the investment!  Get a free quote to learn more about how we can uncover evidence so you can make an informed decision.

C. Wright
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