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The Art of the Steal:
How to Recognize and Prevent Fraud--America's #1 Crime by
Frank W. Abagnale
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- Hardcover: 256 pages ; Dimensions (in
inches): 0.86 x 9.51 x 6.43
- Publisher: Broadway Books; ISBN: 0767906837;
1st edition (October 9, 2001)
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Author Frank W. Abagnale
knows something about fraud--he once committed it for a living.
"Through my various
hustles, I passed something like $2.5 million worth of checks, a blizzard
of paper that I scattered in earnest throughout all fifty states and twenty-six
countries, all before I was legally allowed to drink," he writes.
"I was proficient enough
at cashing fraudulent checks that I earned the distinction of becoming
one of the most hunted criminals by the FBI."
Abagnale was ultimately
caught, and he served prison sentences in France, Sweden, and the United
States. In the 25 years since his release, Abagnale (who also wrote
Catch Me If You Can) has become
a leading consultant on fraud prevention.
"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," he explains.
"I've applied the same relentless attention to working on stopping fraud
that I once applied to perpetrating fraud."
His expertise comes in handy: businesses lose an estimated $400
billion each year to fraud. The stories Abagnale tells in The Art of
the Steal provide fascinating glimpses of a criminal underworld.
He describes "shoulder surfers" who rip off bank customers at ATMs
by videotaping their fingers as they enter PIN numbers, retrieving receipts
from wastebaskets, and then creating fake credit cards--all rather inexpensively.
Whole sections of the book almost read like a how-to manual for
aspiring thieves, though Abagnale has other motives. Throughout, he offers
sensible advice on how to foil the con artists.
Much of this is common sense (cut up credit cards when they expire),
but some of his suggestions aren't so obvious. He warns readers not to
write checks to the "IRS," for instance: "Envelopes to the IRS are common
targets because of where they're going."
Instead, checks should be made out to the "Internal Revenue Service,"
because criminals can turn the "I" of "IRS" into an "M," and turn a tax
payment into a gift for "MRS." Smith. The chapter on the emerging problem
of identity theft--with its tips on how to keep Social Security numbers
private--is especially helpful. In all, The Art of the Steal is
captivating and useful. --John Miller
Book Description
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.
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