Know the Scams: Understanding the Process

 The more advances that technology makes, the more ways scammers find to take your money. Artists are no exception to scammers. You would think the amount of money they could swindle wouldn’t be significant, but I guess if you have a large operation going it can add up. I get almost daily emails, texts, or inquiries about my “captivating art”

Here is an example from today. I have posted it exactly as it arrived at my inbox.

Dear sandraduranwilson, I recently had the pleasure of discovering your artwork, and I was immediately captivated by your unique style and creativity. Your pieces resonate with me on a deep level, and I would be honored to own one. Could you kindly inform me about the availability and pricing of your artwork? I'm eager to learn more about your process and to explore the possibility of adding one of your pieces to my collection. Thank you for sharing your talents with the world. I eagerly await your response. Best regards, Dortmanna

Many times, when these inquiries come to me on Instagram or Facebook, I will direct them to my website. Some of the questions will be about particular paintings, asking if they are still available. That’s a tell. When I direct them to the website for all the relevant information, I never hear back from them. This is a good reason to have a website, and I will give you a link to get one for a wonderful introductory price through my site at FASO. But first, let me tell you a story.

Today, I was catching up on messages and returning emails. I scrolled through my texts and there was one from the day before asking about a particular piece. This was different, first being a text and then asking about a piece that was grabbed from Facebook of a process piece. It wasn’t on my website. I knew this was a scam, but I decided to follow the trail to see where it led. First, I wasn’t sure where the piece was, so it prompted me to search for it. I began communicating with the scammer who now identified as a woman named Jenna from Arkansas. We went back and forth a few times and I did locate the piece in my inventory, so I proceeded to go along with the scam. They gave me a shipping address and asked if I accepted Venmo or Apple Pay for payment. I googled the person and the address and there was a disconnect. I was wondering what would happen to the painting when it unexpectedly arrived at this residence.

These discussions were going very quickly. The person never asked for a discount or any shipping compensation. When I didn’t respond right away, they would text and ask me if I was there. I strung them along for a day just because, and then I proceeded to complete the transaction. I had agreed to use Venmo and gave them my payment information.

I received a message from Venmo warning me of a scam. This is how the scam works, which was what I wanted to know. When the payment was posted there was a message that said since my account wasn’t listed as a business I would need to put up $500 before I could collect the $450 which was the price of the little painting. They get $500, the artist is out of the painting and more. As soon as the message came in I had a call. I didn’t recognize the number but decided to answer. A man with a deep voice and an accent began talking. I hung up. More calls came in and I dismissed them. After a few of these I answered and he asked if I had received the payment. I told him that he was a fraud and this was a scam. He denied it. I said if he wanted the painting he could go through the website and pay there.

I never heard back.

There is a special place for people like this.

I hope my little story informs you or entertains you. There are so many scammers, and they are always looking for a way to steal. I wonder if they put their energy and creativity to use in a legit business what they could accomplish. The painting is now finished and on the website. It is called the Language of Oz, and it contains papers and botanicals that I collected when I was teaching in Australia.