Testimonial: how Daria used her fraud experience for good
With financial fraudsters getting smarter each year, it’s no surprise that two-thirds of us are concerned that Covid-19 has allowed even more opportunity for financial scammers: our reliance on tech has increased, we’re more vulnerable and trusting in this often lonely period, and fraudsters have had a whole year to develop new technology (and techniques) to prey on victims. That’s why we were thrilled to recently work with a forward-thinking tech company, who are trying to find out more about people’s fraud experience to help improve things in the future.
Daria, who joined People for Research in 2021, took part in the paid research session on fraudulent activity, after being a victim herself. She told us about her session and what it involved.
Learning about fraud
It’s often an “unspoken” benefit of taking part in paid research. Sure, you get paid very generously for your time. You get to talk about your opinion for an hour or so and have someone from an organisation that can influence change really listening to you.
But there’s another perk we rarely recognise, and that is the learning side of things, as Daria reminds us:
“I found the session very interesting and informative, and I was very pleased with the result – the research sessions are a great way of learning! My interviewer was asking clear questions, was enthusiastic and engaging, which immediately created a relaxing atmosphere. ”
By taking part in a session, you learn a lot about a given topic like fraud. Our researchers are often very knowledgeable, and their product or service is likely related to the topic in some way, so it can be really useful to learn more. In fact, many participants (and team members, here at People for Research) find out about lots of cool new apps, websites and helpful services that they may otherwise never have known about.
Learning about fraud is the key to avoid being a victim in the future – the more you are aware of it and the common tricks used, the more likely you will be to spot signs, both for yourself and others. We suggest taking an online course, if you haven’t already done so through a workplace, to make sure you’re in the know.
Turning a negative into a positive
Daria wasn’t the only one taking part in this fraud experience research. We had lots of participants with different experiences who took part in the remote Zoom session with our client. Some of them were asked to take part in a second session too, which was a remote focus group. This gave the participants opportunity to hear others experiences, and compare notes. It also helps to know you’re not alone – we’re all vulnerable to fraud, and anyone can be a victim!
Those who took part in both earned themselves £190 as a thank you for sharing. So if you have been a victim of fraud, there’s still chance to make something positive come from it!
Daria says she had a seamless experience in applying and getting chosen to take part. The application process is “quick and easy” and logging onto Zoom and taking part in the session was “effortless”. Remote research sessions have always been popular with the PFR community, and this shows why – you don’t even need to leave the house and can earn almost two-hundred pounds! The saying goes, “if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is” – but it’s not in this case, we promise.
We frequently have financial research like this available, to learn more about products and services out there, and get paid for talking about your experiences. Why not take part in the next one?
