Advik Atyam never expected to be scammed, but he too became a victim while reselling computer parts during the pandemic.
He was in eighth grade at the time, and was talking to someone who wanted to buy his keyboard. Atyam named his price and they agreed to make the deal over PayPal. While the buyer got the keyboard, Atyam said he never got the money, because PayPal held the funds.
That experience prompted Atyam, now a senior at Fairfax High School in Virginia, to launch ScamCops, a website detailing the latest scam trends.
“Many details, which people miss, are the reason you get scammed,” Atyam said. “And that’s our goal, just to solve with prevention.”
The idea initially started as a blog, which Atyam and his peers updated every few weeks with the most common themes. It also features a tool that allows users to describe a potential scam, and uses artificial intelligence to determine whether it’s actually a scam.
It’s evolved to now feature a 25-question quiz and the AI tool to help identify scams before a user gets fooled.
The quiz is regularly updated, because “hackers are always trying to find new ways,” said David Nam, the outreach and social media manager.
Nam got involved because of an experience similar to Atyam’s. He’s unsure what exactly the scam was, but recalls his parents mentioning that all of their money was taken. He suspects an anonymous email resulted in a hack.
“I know firsthand what it’s like to experience being scammed,” Nam said. “The panic, the confusion, and just the scramble to get everything sorted out.”
The site also has a scam awareness guide, which details many of the ways hackers and scammers try to get users’ information.
“If it’s too good to be true, just don’t talk to it,” Atyam said. “No one on Facebook is going to ask you for investment. The IRS isn’t going to make you pay credit cards or gift cards for your missing taxes. It’s a lot of key details, which people are overlooking.”
So far this year, ScamCops has reported about 2,000 site views, Atyam said. A lot of the website traffic comes from India, East Asia and Canada.
In May, the idea won first place at the 2024 Fairfax Area Student Shark Tank Technology Challenge.
In addition to providing resources online, Atyam said he and about 30 volunteers have started outreach at Northern Virginia senior living facilities. In many cases, seniors don’t have much experience with technology and are easy targets, Nam said.
“These are such kind people, such innocent people,” Nam said. “They get ruthlessly scammed and hacked. It honestly just hurts.”
Volunteers are also preparing to set up booths at local banks to help educate people about scams targeting banks or credit unions.
The group wants to expand the website, so users are able to work with it on their phones.
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