She was stealed 830,000 euros. For months, Anne had a virtual relationship with a man who claimed to be the famous actor Brad Pitt. Over the weeks, he asked him for increasingly important money, are that he promised to reimburse him after their marriage. But behind the Instagram account displaying the star’s face, there was actually a Nigerian … For the past ten years, this kind of scam has multiplied in the world. Behind them hide those called grazers.
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What does it mean “” grazer »?
A grazer is a slang term mainly used in West Africa, especially in Côte d’Ivoire, to designate a crook or an online scammer. Grilling literally means eating or feeding in Ivorian slang. The grazers eat their victims’ money …
Who are the grazers?
The grazers are mainly based in Africa, even if they are increasingly found in India and Pakistan. Often young, even minor, grazers master the latest technologies and social networks with talent. In Africa there are real grave farms, which brings together dozens of individuals responsible for scamming people on social networks. The objective of the grazers is simple: extorting money. And for that, they have implemented several techniques and strategies.
Grazing techniques
The main and most used of grazing techniques is the “” Romance Scam ”. Concretely, grazers contact a person (often elderly), under a false identity, and start a discussion with them. At the start, the exchanges are simply friendly. The grazer presents himself, explains that he is looking for friends … This binding phase can last for several weeks. Finally, once a link has been knotted, the grazer suddenly explains that he is in a difficult situation.
He will ask his victim a sum of money, that he promises to reimburse
He will therefore ask his victim a sum of money, which he promises to reimburse. If the victim refuses, the grazer quickly begins to make emotional blackmail by playing on emotions. If the victim accepts, the grazer will send him very clear instructions for the sending of money. Once the amount has been received, the grazer can either disappear overnight or try to defraud more money.
Other online scam techniques exist:
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Phishing : Sending emails that seem to come from legitimate sources in order to obtain personal or financial information.
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False investments : High performance promises on fictitious investments, often in fields such as real estate or mines.
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THE threats : The grazer threatens to reveal information or intimate photos of the victim that he would hold, if the latter does not send him money.
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THE False Star accounts : On social networks, grazers usurp the identity of celebrities, and contact victims by making them false promises (dedication, competition prices, etc.), in exchange for money.
The grazers do not hesitate to send false photos, stolen on the internet, in order to make their history more credible.
The fight against grazers
The fight against grazers is extremely difficult given their geographic distance. It is therefore necessary to go through international cooperation organizations. At the criminal level, they risk seven years in prison, for scam in an organized gang. In France, a brigade for the repression of clever delinquency (BRDA) specializes in these files.
With the advent of artificial intelligence, the number of grazers and the quality of their scams have been multiplied. With this tool, they manage to generate ultra-realistic photos. It is estimated at several thousand per month the number of French people scammed by grazers. A figure that continues to increase.
