What are the common red signs of a Yahoo boy? This is a question that has been lingering on the minds of many folks for long, without adequate answers. The advent of ICT and digital tech has ushered mankind into a new wave of possibilities and economic advancements, without a doubt.
However, just like they often say that “for every good thing, there is always a side effect.” Same as anyone would readily agree that the modern-day internet has a lot of benefits, there are few downsides too. And of one of the most notorious disadvantages of ICT advent is “digital and online scams.”
In recent times, the tendency for one to get defrauded via the web, is on the rise. Online scams are evolving on a day-to-day basis. According to a report documented by the FBI, a whooping sum of $3.5 billion was lost to online scams and frauds in 2019 alone. Definitely, more victims would have lost their hard-earned funds to these online fraudsters, which were not even officially reported.
So, the question is “what are those signs of a Yahoo boy?” How can one identify a potential scammer? Is it possible to carry out safe transactions online?
Let’s take a mental journey as we dive into the characteristics and traits to identifying scammers.
What is the meaning of Yahoo boy?
A Yahoo boy is a young male who earns a source of living from online scamming activities. It is a Nigerian context used to refer to rich fraudsters who have amassed large fortunes from scamming unsuspecting victims on the internet.
The term can be traced to the former Search Engine company — Yahoo! The messenger platform of the company, Yahoo mail, was one of the oldest medium through which these young men perpetrated their fraud activities.
Although, these young men have devised smarter ways of scams aside the defunct messenger platform, the name “Yahoo boys” lingered on.
What are the signs of a Yahoo boy?
Knowing the signs of a Yahoo boy is critically essential to avoid being a victim of their criminal activities on the web. In this part of the article, we will be taking a look at two major ways to know and identify a scammer.
We will dive further into knowing how to discern a fraudster, both online and offline.
How to identify a Yahoo boy online
It can be a little bit difficult to determine if an individual is into scam or not, on social media. However, there are common signs that are peculiar to most scammers. They are enumerated as follows:
1. Fake Social media accounts
A concrete method of identifying a scammer is by checking thoroughly through their profile. Most of the times, they make use of accounts illegitimately hijacked from real users. You can take a look at their name, and their profile link. If the account is fake, you will likely discover a discrepancy between the link and their name. They don’t usually match, and that’s the first red signal to mark a scammer.
2. Inconsistencies in profile activities
The second approach to nabbing a Yahoo boy (internet scammer) online is by monitoring his/her profile history. If you detect any change in pattern of their account’s activities such as irregular profile photos and uploads, you should be on alert mode.
3. Ambiguous personality
Online scammers often find it uneasy to create a fake profile with normal user persona. They usually create unreal impressions of a personality unnatural to them and this often drives them to maintaining an online profile with questionable traits. The good news is, detecting such uncertain personalities is a walk in the park.
A decent level of sensitivity, on your own end, will help you to figure out the vaguity.
4. Checking the friends’ list
Another perfect cue to identifying a Yahoo boy online is by going through the list of their friends and followers. It’s a common thing to fake accounts of rich foreign men or women. But, if the bulk of their online friends are locales, then you need no soothsayer to tell you what you need to know. Run!
Lest you get carried away, It’s imperative I reiterate that these method of detecting online scammers doesn’t apply to just Yahoo boys alone. It works when it comes to quick identification of cybercriminals across the global web.
How to Identify A Yahoo boy offline
In the last subheading, I mentioned some of the methods to identify scammers on the web. This part explained how to identify Yahoo boys outside the web. We will taking a look at some of the signs of a Yahoo boy probably living around you. Let’s continue!
1. He Leads an extravagant lifestyle with no verifiable source of income
In the Nigerian scene, a quick cue to identify online scammers is the lavish lifestyle they lead even when they have no legitimate source of income. You see young men driving posh cars, wearing expensive designer wears, and so on. This is an accurate pointer to know a typical Nigerian Yahoo boy.
2. He has multiple Yahoo boy apps on his phone
There are few combo of apps most Yahoo boys have on their smartphones which includes but is not limited to:
• Cash App
• Zelle
• Google Voice
• Chime
• Crypto Wallets
• TextNow
• And so on.
These are some of the apps that these boys use in carrying out their scams.
3. He has a collection of pictures of white women on his phone
One of the formats which Yahoo boys usually use is “romance scams,” and as a result, they often stock pictures of white women on their devices. This is a clear indication that he is into online scam.
More so, this explains why Nigerian law enforcement agents are always looking out to search through phones of young men, in the fight against cybercrime.
4. He often recites the Yahoo boy qoutes
There are some certain slangs peculiar to, and mostly used by Yahoo boys to motivate themselves. Some of those Yahoo boy quotes include:
• He who stays awake shall find meat to eat.
• The rain that drenched us today, will wash our Benz tomorrow.
• Fear who never collect…
• A poor man during the day can become wealthy by sunset, same day.
• And the list goes on.
If a guy is fond of chanting some of the Yahoo boy quotes, he’s likely one.
5. He often stays up every night and sleeps during daytime
There’s no much explanation for this. Due to the differences in time zone, Yahoo boys are compelled to stay up late at nights to keep up with their potential victims (which they often refer to as ‘clients’).
How to Avoid Online Scams
Securing yourself from the claws of these online poaches isn’t too hard once you understand how the internet works. Here are some common types of online scams to look out for, and avoid:
•Phishing scams
•Fake e-commerce websites
•Romance scams
•Advance fee fraud
•Covid-19 online scams
•Fake non-profit donation sites
•Fake antivirus software programs
•Vague government sites
READ: 23 Easy Jobs That Pay Well for Most Careers
Bottom Line
Understanding the signs of a Yahoo boy is the first step to avoiding being scammed online. Once you know how to identify the red lights, you will be able to get yourself away before you become a prey to a scammer.
The internet is a perfect resource to earn a living, but one has to be on the toes always, to avoid those stories that do touch the heart.
Do you have any questions or contribution to the topic? Kindly drop them in the comments box. We will take our time to respond to every single one.
Signs Of A Yahoo Boy
Signs Of A Yahoo Boy
Signs Of A Yahoo Boy
Signs Of A Yahoo Boy
Signs Of A Yahoo Boy
Signs Of A Yahoo Boy
Signs Of A Yahoo Boy