The Mind Of A Con Man

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The Mind of a Con Man

Author : Leland Benton
Publisher : CreateSpace
ISBN 13 : 9781493662937
Total Pages : 130 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (629 download)

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Book Synopsis The Mind of a Con Man by : Leland Benton

Download or read book The Mind of a Con Man written by Leland Benton and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2013-11 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Manipulation – The Mind of a Con Man is a book you have ever read before but it is a book you should read! I am going to take you on an adventure into the human mind and show you not only why con men do what they do but why you do the things you do too. It is a unique book describing con man games, con man tricks, con man traits, con man terms, manipulation, emotional manipulator, deception & lies. It is an eye-opening expose taking you into the mind of con men and discovering why they do what they do. This book leaves no stone unturned as it delves deeply into the subject matter. It first describes the Type 1 con men, who are individuals who work hard at the deceptive profession but then it goes even further into Type 2 con men, which you come into contact daily through friends, family, co-workers ,etc that attempt to manipulate you into doing something. This book will fascinate you and you will see yourself within its pages as you learn all about deceptive people, the ways they operate, their tricks, their games and much more. Written by one of the nation's leading behavioral scientists, Dr. Leland Benton is the author of over two dozen self-help books and nonfiction behavioral science texts. He is a best-selling Amazon author with over 200-books published on Amazon alone. You need to read this book.

The Confidence Game

Author : Maria Konnikova
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 0143109871
Total Pages : 354 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (431 download)

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Book Synopsis The Confidence Game by : Maria Konnikova

Download or read book The Confidence Game written by Maria Konnikova and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2017-01-10 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "It’s a startling and disconcerting read that should make you think twice every time a friend of a friend offers you the opportunity of a lifetime.” —Erik Larson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Dead Wake and bestselling author of Devil in the White City Think you can’t get conned? Think again. The New York Times bestselling author of Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes explains how to spot the con before they spot you. “[An] excellent study of Con Artists, stories & the human need to believe” –Neil Gaiman, via Twitter A compelling investigation into the minds, motives, and methods of con artists—and the people who fall for their cons over and over again. While cheats and swindlers may be a dime a dozen, true conmen—the Bernie Madoffs, the Jim Bakkers, the Lance Armstrongs—are elegant, outsized personalities, artists of persuasion and exploiters of trust. How do they do it? Why are they successful? And what keeps us falling for it, over and over again? These are the questions that journalist and psychologist Maria Konnikova tackles in her mesmerizing new book. From multimillion-dollar Ponzi schemes to small-time frauds, Konnikova pulls together a selection of fascinating stories to demonstrate what all cons share in common, drawing on scientific, dramatic, and psychological perspectives. Insightful and gripping, the book brings readers into the world of the con, examining the relationship between artist and victim. The Confidence Game asks not only why we believe con artists, but also examines the very act of believing and how our sense of truth can be manipulated by those around us.

How To Become A Professional Con Artist

Author : Dennis M. Marlock
Publisher : Paladin Press
ISBN 13 : 9781581602692
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (26 download)

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Book Synopsis How To Become A Professional Con Artist by : Dennis M. Marlock

Download or read book How To Become A Professional Con Artist written by Dennis M. Marlock and published by Paladin Press. This book was released on 2001-09-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fool and his money are soon parted, so the saying goes. And if the job is done right, the fool doesn't even realize it's happened until the wily con artist has moved on to the next victim or the next town. In this entertaining and eye-opening book, Dennis M. Marlock, a retired cop and chairman of the board for the international law enforcement organization Professionals Against Confidence Crime, takes the reader into the mind and greedy heart of the con man. You'll learn the mechanics behind famous swindles such as the pigeon drop, the Jamaican switch, bank-examiner schemes, three-card monte and even fortune-telling. You'll find out why a good scam artist rarely gets caught and, if he does, how he gets away with the lightest punishment or no punishment at all. If you've ever read a news story about a sucker getting taken and wondered how he could have fallen for that, you need to read this book before an honest-faced stranger offers you a deal too good to pass up.

Provenance

Author : Laney Salisbury
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 1101105003
Total Pages : 352 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (11 download)

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Book Synopsis Provenance by : Laney Salisbury

Download or read book Provenance written by Laney Salisbury and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2009-07-09 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A tautly paced investigation of one the 20th century's most audacious art frauds, which generated hundreds of forgeries-many of them still hanging in prominent museums and private collections today Provenance is the extraordinary narrative of one of the most far-reaching and elaborate deceptions in art history. Investigative reporters Laney Salisbury and Aly Sujo brilliantly recount the tale of a great con man and unforgettable villain, John Drewe, and his sometimes unwitting accomplices. Chief among those was the struggling artist John Myatt, a vulnerable single father who was manipulated by Drewe into becoming a prolific art forger. Once Myatt had painted the pieces, the real fraud began. Drewe managed to infiltrate the archives of the upper echelons of the British art world in order to fake the provenance of Myatt's forged pieces, hoping to irrevocably legitimize the fakes while effectively rewriting art history. The story stretches from London to Paris to New York, from tony Manhattan art galleries to the esteemed Giacometti and Dubuffet associations, to the archives at the Tate Gallery. This enormous swindle resulted in the introduction of at least two hundred forged paintings, some of them breathtakingly good and most of them selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Many of these fakes are still out in the world, considered genuine and hung prominently in private houses, large galleries, and prestigious museums. And the sacred archives, undermined by John Drewe, remain tainted to this day. Provenance reads like a well-plotted thriller, filled with unforgettable characters and told at a breakneck pace. But this is most certainly not fiction; Provenance is the meticulously researched and captivating account of one of the greatest cons in the history of art forgery.

Fake

Author : Stephanie Wood
Publisher : Random House Australia
ISBN 13 : 1760899119
Total Pages : 354 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (68 download)

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Book Synopsis Fake by : Stephanie Wood

Download or read book Fake written by Stephanie Wood and published by Random House Australia. This book was released on 2020-09 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Women the world over are brought up to hope, even expect, to find the man of their dreams, marry and live happily ever after. When Stephanie Woods meets a sweet, sophisticated man who owns land and businesses, she embarks on an exhilarating romance with him. He seems compassionate, truthful and loving. He talks about the future with her. She falls in love. She also becomes increasingly beset by anxiety at the lavish three-act plays he offers her in the form of excuses for frequent cancellations and no-shows. She begins to wonder, who is this man? When she ends the relationship Stephanie switches back on her journalistic nous and uncovers a story of mind-boggling duplicity and manipulation. She also finds she is not alone; that the world is full of smart, sassy women who have suffered the attentions of liars, cheats, narcissists, fantasists and phonies, men with dangerously adept abilities to deceive. In this brilliantly acute and broad-ranging book, Wood, an award-winning writer and journalist, has written a riveting, important account of contemporary love, and the resilience of those who have witnessed its darkest sides." --Back cover.

The Con Artists

Author : Luke Healy
Publisher : Drawn & Quarterly
ISBN 13 : 1770466479
Total Pages : 156 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (74 download)

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Book Synopsis The Con Artists by : Luke Healy

Download or read book The Con Artists written by Luke Healy and published by Drawn & Quarterly. This book was released on 2022-06-07 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is going to be Frank’s year. He’s going to do it all: find love, become a famous comedian, and responsibly parent his plants. But then, Giorgio gets hit by a bus. Self-assured and utterly entitled, Giorgio has always seemed like “Frank, but better.” Moving in with and caring for his estranged childhood friend quickly starts to chip away at Frank’s sense of self, as well as Giogio’s carefully curated online persona. Is Giorgio’s penchant for overindulgence truly aspirational? Or is it ultimately a red flag? The further Frank is pulled into Giorgio’s orbit, the quicker his existential dread blooms. Expectation and reality soon collide in a singular tale about trust and confidence. Luke Healy’s playful, hilarious third graphic novel uses crisp lines and physical comedy to portray an uneasy friendship between two young men on the cusp of adulting. Snippets from Frank’s middling stand-up routines are punctuated by the subtle farce of Healy’s mise-en-scène and the lively, at times scathingly pointed, banter of old friends. The Con Artists is a stylish character study that asks the question of who fools who once everyone is off-camera.

The Big Con

Author : David Maurer
Publisher : Anchor
ISBN 13 : 030775572X
Total Pages : 337 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (77 download)

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Book Synopsis The Big Con by : David Maurer

Download or read book The Big Con written by David Maurer and published by Anchor. This book was released on 2010-10-27 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The classic 1940 study of con men and con games that Luc Sante in Salon called “a bonanza of wild but credible stories, told concisely with deadpan humor, as sly and rich in atmosphere as anything this side of Mark Twain.” “Of all the grifters, the confidence man is the aristocrat,” wrote David Maurer, a proposition he definitely proved in The Big Con, one of the most colorful, well-researched, and entertaining works of criminology ever written. A professor of linguistics who specialized in underworld argot, Maurer won the trust of hundreds of swindlers, who let him in on not simply their language but their folkways and the astonishingly complex and elaborate schemes whereby unsuspecting marks, hooked by their own greed and dishonesty, were “taken off” – i.e. cheated—of thousands upon thousands of dollars. The Big Con is a treasure trove of American lingo (the write, the rag, the payoff, ropers, shills, the cold poke, the convincer, to put on the send) and indelible characters (Yellow Kid Weil, Barney the Patch, the Seldom Seen Kid, Limehouse Chappie, Larry the Lug). It served as the source for the Oscar-winning film The Sting.

Chasing Phil

Author : David Howard
Publisher : Crown
ISBN 13 : 1101907444
Total Pages : 384 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (19 download)

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Book Synopsis Chasing Phil by : David Howard

Download or read book Chasing Phil written by David Howard and published by Crown. This book was released on 2017-10-10 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A thrilling true crime caper, bursting with colorful characters and awash in ‘70s glamour, that spotlights the FBI's first white-collar undercover sting 1977, the Thunderbird Motel. J.J. Wedick and Jack Brennan—two fresh-faced, maverick FBI agents—were about to embark on one of their agency's first wire-wearing undercover missions. Their target? Charismatic, globetrotting con man Phil Kitzer, whom some called the world's greatest swindler. From the Thunderbird, the three men took off to Cleveland, to Miami, to Hawaii, to Frankfurt, to the Bahamas—meeting other members of Kitzer's crime syndicate and powerful politicians and businessmen he fooled at each stop. But as the young agents, playing the role of proteges and co-conspirators, became further entangled in Phil's outrageous schemes over their months on the road, they also grew to respect him—even care for him. Meanwhile, Phil began to think of Jack and J.J. as best friends, sharing hotel rooms and inside jokes with them and even competing with J.J. in picking up women. Phil Kitzer was at the center of dozens of scams in which he swindled millions of dollars, but the FBI was mired in a post-Watergate malaise and slow to pivot toward a new type of financial crime that is now all too familiar. Plunging into the field with no undercover training, the agents battled a creaky bureaucracy on their adventures with Phil, hoping the FBI would recognize the importance of their mission. Even as they grew closer to Phil, they recognized that their endgame—the swindler's arrest—was drawing near… Anchored by larger-than-life characters, framed by exotic locales and an irresistible era, Chasing Phil is high drama and propulsive reading, delivered by an effortless storyteller.

Scam Me If You Can

Author : Frank Abagnale
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 0525538976
Total Pages : 352 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (255 download)

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Book Synopsis Scam Me If You Can by : Frank Abagnale

Download or read book Scam Me If You Can written by Frank Abagnale and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2019-08-27 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Are you at risk of being scammed? Former con artist and bestselling author of Catch Me If You Can Frank Abagnale shows you how to stop scammers in their tracks. Maybe you're wondering how to make the scam phone calls stop. Perhaps someone has stolen your credit card number. Or you've been a victim of identity theft. Even if you haven't yet been the target of a crime, con artists are always out there, waiting for the right moment to steal your information, your money, and your life. As one of the world's most respected authorities on the subjects of fraud, forgery, and cyber security, Frank Abagnale knows how scammers work. In Scam Me If You Can, he reveals the latest tricks that today's scammers, hackers, and con artists use to steal your money and personal information--often online and over the phone. Using plain language and vivid examples, Abagnale reveals hundreds of tips, including: • The best way to protect your phone from being hacked • The only time you should ever use a debit card • The one type of photo you should never post on social media • The only conditions under which you should use WiFi networks at the airport • The safest way to use an ATM With his simple but counterintuitive rules, Abagnale also makes use of his insider intel to paint a picture of cybercrimes that haven't become widespread yet.

Duped

Author : Abby Ellin
Publisher : Hachette UK
ISBN 13 : 0349420270
Total Pages : 272 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (494 download)

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Book Synopsis Duped by : Abby Ellin

Download or read book Duped written by Abby Ellin and published by Hachette UK. This book was released on 2019-01-15 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Abby Ellin's writing is everything her fiancé pretended to be: witty, vulnerable, brave, smart, and honest.' - Michael Finkel, author of The Stranger in the Woods In Duped, New York Times journalist Abby Ellin explores the secret lives of compulsive liars, and the tragedy of those who trust them. Perfect for anybody who enjoyed Bad Blood and Dirty John. While leading a double life sounds like the stomping ground of psychopaths, moles, and covert agents with indeterminate dialects, plenty of people who appear 'normal' keep canyon-sized secrets from those in their immediate orbits. These untold stories lead to enormous surprises, often unpleasant ones. Duped is an investigation of compulsive liars - and how they fool their loved ones - drawing on Abby Ellin's personal experience. From the day Abby went on her first date with The Commander, she was caught up in a whirlwind. Within five months he'd proposed, and they'd moved in together. But there were red flags: strange stories of international espionage, involving Osama bin Laden and the Pentagon. Soon his stories began to unravel until she discovered, far later than she'd have liked, that he was a complete and utter fraud. When Ellin wrote about her experience in Psychology Today, the responses were unlike anything she'd experienced as a journalist. Legions of people wrote in with similar stories, of otherwise sharp-witted and self-aware people being taken in by ludicrous scams. Why was it so hard to spot these outlandish stories? Why were so many of the perpetrators male, and so many of the victims female? Was there something universal at play here? In Duped, New York Times journalist Abby Ellin explores the secret lives of compulsive liars, and the tragedy of those who trust them - who have experienced severe, prolonged betrayal - and the terrible impact on their sense of reality and their ability to trust ever again. Studying the art and science of lying, talking to victims who've had their worlds turned upside down, and writing with great openness about her own mistakes, she lays the phenomenon bare. Ellin offers us a shocking and intimate look not only at the damage that the duplicitous cause, but the painful reaction of a society that is all too quick to blame the believer.

The Modern Con Man

Author : Todd Robbins
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN 13 : 159691453X
Total Pages : 242 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (969 download)

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Book Synopsis The Modern Con Man by : Todd Robbins

Download or read book The Modern Con Man written by Todd Robbins and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2008-04-08 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A whimsical resource for low-risk grifters provides a treasury of humorous tips and historical facts about the art of the con, in a volume that outlines easy-to-follow swindles that can be used to score free meals, good tickets, bar bets, and more.

The Art of the Con

Author : R. Paul Wilson
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 1493016113
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (93 download)

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Book Synopsis The Art of the Con by : R. Paul Wilson

Download or read book The Art of the Con written by R. Paul Wilson and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2014-11-04 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A sucker is still born every minute. In this modern and interconnected world, con-men are lurking everywhere – it’s never been easier for them to dupe us, take from us, and infiltrate our lives. One of the world’s leading and celebrated experts on con-games takes the reader through the history of cons, how they’ve been updated to the modern age, how they work, how to spot them, and how to protect yourself from being the victim of one. R. Paul Wilson is a con-man who works for the other side – our side. He has spent a lifetime learning, performing, studying, and teaching about the ins and outs of the con world in order to open up our eyes to the dangers lurking about us – and to show us how not to get taken. Paul has never made a living as a con-man, profiting off of marks – he has used his expertise throughout his life to help people avoid cons. In this fascinating book, Paul takes the reader through the history and developments of the con game, what elements from the past are based on basic human psychology and have stood the test of time, what has been updated for the modern era and how it’s getting used in the computer age, the structure of how these cons work, and – most importantly - how to recognize one, protect yourself and your loved ones, and avoid becoming just another sucker.

Veritas

Author : Ariel Sabar
Publisher : Anchor
ISBN 13 : 0525433899
Total Pages : 433 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (254 download)

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Book Synopsis Veritas by : Ariel Sabar

Download or read book Veritas written by Ariel Sabar and published by Anchor. This book was released on 2021-06-29 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the National Book Critics Circle Award-winning author comes the gripping true story of a sensational religious forgery and the scandal that shook Harvard. In 2012, Dr. Karen King, a star religion professor at Harvard, announced a breathtaking discovery just steps from the Vatican: she’d found an ancient scrap of papyrus in which Jesus calls Mary Magdalene “my wife.” The mysterious manuscript, which King provocatively titled “The Gospel of Jesus’s Wife,” had the power to topple the Roman Catholic Church. It threatened not just the all-male priesthood, but centuries of sacred teachings on marriage, sex, and women’s leadership, much of it premised on the hallowed tradition of a celibate Jesus. Award-winning journalist Ariel Sabar covered King’s announcement in Rome but left with a question that no one seemed able to answer: Where in the world did this history-making papyrus come from? Sabar’s dogged sleuthing led from the halls of Harvard Divinity School to the former headquarters of the East German Stasi before landing on the trail of a Florida man with an unbelievable past. Could a motorcycle-riding pornographer with a fake Egyptology degree and a prophetess wife have set in motion one of the greatest hoaxes of the century? A propulsive tale laced with twists and trapdoors, Veritas is an exhilarating, globe-straddling detective story about an Ivy League historian and a college dropout—and how they worked together to pass off an audacious forgery as a long-lost piece of the Bible.

Paikin and the Premiers

Author : Steve Paikin
Publisher : Dundurn
ISBN 13 : 1459709594
Total Pages : 408 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (597 download)

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Book Synopsis Paikin and the Premiers by : Steve Paikin

Download or read book Paikin and the Premiers written by Steve Paikin and published by Dundurn. This book was released on 2013-09-23 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A unique perspective on Ontario’s most powerful political leaders. Ontario’s fortunes and fates increasingly rest in the hands of the province’s premier. Critics say the role of premier concentrates too much power in one person, but at least that points to the one person Ontarians, and others beyond the province’s borders, ought to know all about. Few people know the modern-era premiers of Canada’s most populous province the way Steve Paikin does. He has covered Queen’s Park politics, discussed provincial issues from all perspectives with his TVO guests, and has interviewed the premiers one-on-one. Paikin and the Premiers offers a rare, uniform perspective on John Robarts, Bill Davis, Frank Miller, David Peterson, Bob Rae, Mike Harris, Ernie Eves, Dalton McGuinty, and Kathleen Wynne – from the vantage point of one of Canada’s most astute and respected journalists.

How to Cheat at Everything

Author : Simon Lovell
Publisher : Running Press Adult
ISBN 13 : 9781560259732
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (597 download)

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Book Synopsis How to Cheat at Everything by : Simon Lovell

Download or read book How to Cheat at Everything written by Simon Lovell and published by Running Press Adult. This book was released on 2007-01-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gambling is more popular than ever, with multi-million dollar poker tournaments on television, gambling themed movies like Rounders gaining in popularity, and casinos opening in just about every state of the U.S. How to Cheat at Everything is a roller-coaster ride through bar bets, street hustles, carnivals, Internet fraud, big and small cons, card and dice games and more. You'll even find the exact frauds that the NYPD regard as the most common and dangerous today, and learn top tips on how to avoid each one. This inside information comes from Lovell's lifetime of experience in the field, along with additional information from both sides of the law. Not just a "here's how the con works" book; this guides you through the set up, the talk, the sell, everything about the con, and how you can be suckered into one. If you think that you can't be conned; then you are already halfway to being so! There is no preaching here, just a fun ripping ride through a world so few know about. You'll meet wild, eccentric and larcenous characters and you'll learn how they work their money-making deeds, all without having to risk a penny of your own money.

A Theft

Author : Hanif Kureishi
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780571323197
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (231 download)

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Book Synopsis A Theft by : Hanif Kureishi

Download or read book A Theft written by Hanif Kureishi and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nearing sixty and needing to plan for his and his children's future, the author employed an accountant from a reputable firm. When the accountant recommended investing in a property scheme, he followed his advice - only to find out that the accountant was a fraudster and his entire life savings had vanished. This book tells his story.

The Art of the Steal

Author : Frank W. Abagnale
Publisher : Currency
ISBN 13 : 0767910915
Total Pages : 240 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (679 download)

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Book Synopsis The Art of the Steal by : Frank W. Abagnale

Download or read book The Art of the Steal written by Frank W. Abagnale and published by Currency. This book was released on 2002-01-29 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The world--famous former con artist and bestselling author of Catch Me if You Can now reveals the mind--boggling tricks of the scam trade--with advice that has made him one of America's most sought--after fraud--prevention experts. "I had as much knowledge as any man alive concerning the mechanics of forgery, check swindling, counterfeiting, and other similar crimes. Ever since I'd been released from prison, I'd often felt that if I directed this knowledge into the right channels, I could help people a great deal. Every time I went to the store and wrote a check, I would see two or three mistakes made on the part of the clerk or cashier, mistakes that a flimflam artist would take advantage of. . . . In a certain sense, I'm still a con artist. I'm just putting down a positive con these days, as opposed to the negative con I used in the past. I've merely redirected the talents I've always possessed. I've applied the same relentless attention to working on stopping fraud that I once applied to perpetuating fraud." In Catch Me if You Can, Frank W. Abagnale recounted his youthful career as a master imposter and forger. In The Art of the Steal, Abagnale tells the remarkable story of how he parlayed his knowledge of cons and scams into a successful career as a consultant on preventing financial foul play--while showing you how to identify and outsmart perpetrators of fraud. Technology may have made it easier to track down criminals, but cyberspace has spawned a skyrocketing number of ways to commit crime--much of it untraceable. Businesses are estimated to lose an unprecedented $400 billion a year from fraud of one sort or another. If we were able to do away with fraud for just two years, we'd erase the national debt and pay Social Security for the next one hundred years. However, Abagnale has discovered that punishment for committing fraud, much less recovery of stolen funds, seldom happens: Once you're a victim, you won't get your money back. Prevention is the best form of protection. Drawn from his twenty-five years of experience as an ingenious con artist (whose check scams alone mounted to more than $2 million in stolen funds), Abagnale's The Art of the Steal provides eye-opening stories of true scams, with tips on how they can be prevented. Abagnale takes you deep inside the world and mind of the con artist, showing you just how he pulled off his scams and what you can do to avoid becoming the next victim. You'll hear the stories of notorious swindles, like the mustard squirter trick and the "rock in the box" ploy, and meet the criminals like the famous Vickers Gang who perpetrated them. You'll find out why crooks wash checks and iron credit cards and why a thief brings glue with him to the ATM. And finally, you'll learn how to recognize a bogus check or a counterfeit bill, and why you shouldn't write your grocery list on a deposit slip. A revealing look inside the predatory criminal mind from a former master of the con, The Art of the Steal is the ultimate defense against even the craftiest crook.