Since the start of the covid-19 pandemic, countless Colombians began to explore the possibilities of moving their capital to safer economies in order to protect interests and even migrated to other countries, given the conditions that the pandemic itself generated. However, in multiple cases, what began as an initiative to shield assets turned them into victims of fraud and left them immersed in cumbersome commercial litigation.
According to the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC), victims of fraud in that country lost about USD8.8 billion in 2022, a growth of 2.6 billion over the previous year (USD6. 200 million). For the FTC, Florida, one of the states preferred by Colombians to migrate and invest, ranked fourth in the list of states with the highest number of reported scams.
After an analysis of more than one billion transactions made since the start of the pandemic, it was found that three out of ten Colombians are victims of digital fraud after studying more than 40,000 websites and applications.
The population group most affected by this type of scam in Colombia, with 35%, is generation X, those born between 1965 and 1979. They are followed by those known as millennials, people born between 1980 and 1994, who are affected by digital fraud by 32%.
In this context, an increase in the number of cases in Latin American adults stands out, where four out of ten Latinos are the object of a scam.
“We are seeing with concern that more and more Colombians are victims of commercial fraud in Florida, whether they are established in the United States or decide to invest from their countries seeking refuge for capital in the face of political and economic instability in the region,” affirmed the lawyer José M. Ferrer, specialist in international arbitration.
For Ferrer, a trend was triggered where hundreds of Colombians invested in assets and business opportunities in the United States thinking about the economic and legal stability of that country, without first consulting a specialist, to later end up scammed, since there are no contracts or documents, or if there are any, they are minimal.
Most Common Types of Business Fraud
Although scams such as financial fraud, the acquisition of real estate that do not exist or breaches of commercial agreements between companies are sometimes the most notorious cases, there are other types of fraud that, although at first glance they may be minor, are the most frequent and in which the Latin American victims fall.
In Florida alone, 27% of fraud reports are for identity theft, 21% related to credit bureaus and providers, 9% imposter scams, 5% banking, 4% online purchases, 4% related to cars, 3% debt collection and 2% those associated with prizes, lottery, health care and credit cards.
Faced with this reality, lawyer Maia Aron, an expert in financial fraud cases, provided a series of recommendations to victims of commercial fraud in the United States.
“Becoming a victim is easier than you think. Therefore, the main recommendation is to seek advice from a competent lawyer who will accompany you during the process. It is very important that there is fluidity between the victim of fraud and the lawyer who represents him, therefore it is advisable to look for a person who speaks Spanish, who understands, guides and is capable of informing him step by step of the decisions and procedures ”, Aaron stated.
In addition, he specified the following:
• Act quickly and contact a lawyer as soon as possible. Some types of investment fraud can take longer to resolve than others, so you need to act quickly to try to get your money back.
• Avoid giving more information to scammers. They will try to continue the scam until the person allows it.
• Collect the greatest amount of evidence and communications with the counterparty. Save any correspondence (including emails) you had with the company or person involved.
• Experts will review the case and determine if the losses warrant legal action. They will guide you through the financial recovery process
• Don’t get discouraged. Although in many cases the scammer spends the stolen money, it may be possible to sue third parties or entities that helped the criminal such as banks, accountants or lawyers. It is very important to explore all options. with Infobae