Scam Rangers

Scam Rangers - A podcast about the human side of fraud and the people who are on a mission to protect us. We will hear from activists, researchers, prosecutors, human trafficking experts and other advocates, telling the story of scams and scam victims from their perspectives. Most importantly - we can learn what we can do about it. If you are enjoying this show, subscribe, and follow me on LinkedIn for more information and news about online scams: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

Scam Rangers is a leisure podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 62 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Unknown Host hosts Scam Rangers, a leisure show with 62 episodes published.

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  Episode #22

  The Intelligence Gap: Why Are Scams Still Getting Through? A conversation with Ian Matthews, Founder and CEO of Strata Labs

  Sep 30, 202642 minS2

  Scam signals exist across telecom networks, messaging platforms, and financial institutions. Why aren’t they translating into stronger protection? In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin speaks with Ian Matthews, founder and CEO of Strata Labs and former founder and CEO of WMC Global, about the limits of message filtering, the changing role of carriers and technology platforms, and the intelligence banks could use to intervene earlier. Ian explains what reported messages reveal about scammers and their targets, and why getting those signals to financial institutions could help prevent losses before money moves. In This Episode Why scam messages still get through network filters. How RCS and iMessage are changing visibility and protection. What reported messages reveal and how banks could use that intelligence. The barriers to sharing signals across industries. How AI is accelerating scams and the need for stronger collaboration. About Ian Matthews Ian Matthews leads Strata Labs, a strategic advisory focused on telecommunications, cybersecurity, and AI. Previously, he founded and led WMC Global, connecting telecom threat intelligence with the organizations working to protect consumers. About the Host Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm. Through her work at RangersAI and her advisory for the Global Anti-Scam Alliance and Stop Scams Alliance, Ayelet works with financial institutions and industry leaders to advance a more human-centered approach to scam prevention. Follow Ayelet on LinkedIn Learn more about RangersAI

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  Episode #21

  Fighting Scams, Rebuilding Trust. One Call at a Time, a conversation with Jaime Zetterstrom, VP Product Management, SOMOS

  Sep 17, 202641 minS2

  What happens when people stop trusting their phones? Scammers have made calls, texts, and messaging platforms central to the way they reach and manipulate victims. And as scams become more targeted and move across multiple channels, the challenge is no longer simply blocking spam or stopping robocalls. In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with Jaime Zetterstrom, VP of Product & Innovation at Somos, to explore the role of the telecom industry in fighting scams—and the difficult balance between protecting consumers, preserving privacy, and keeping communications open. Jaime explains why modern scams are increasingly “surgical,” how criminals move between platforms to evade detection, and why collaboration between telecom providers, financial institutions, regulators, and consumers is becoming essential. They also explore a bigger consequence of the scam epidemic: the erosion of trust. When people stop answering unknown calls or trusting messages, legitimate businesses, banks, healthcare providers, and other organizations lose an important way to reach them. Rebuilding that trust, Jaime says, may happen one call and one message at a time. In This Episode Why telecom is at the center of many scam journeys How scams have evolved from high-volume spam to more targeted, cross-platform attacks Why stopping scam communications is more complicated than simply blocking suspicious calls or messages What telecom providers are already doing to combat fraudulent traffic How banks and telecom providers can share signals to disrupt scams earlier Why consumer reporting matters—and why consumers need a better feedback loop How scams are damaging trust in calls and messages The opportunity to create more trusted communication between legitimate brands and consumers Why Jaime believes scams are, at their core, an identity problem About Jaime Zetterstrom - Jaime Zetterstrom is VP of Product & Innovation at Somos and a longtime telecommunications and fraud-fighting leader. Her career spans technology, fraud prevention, product development, and trusted communications. At Somos, Jaime focuses on building a more trusted telecommunications ecosystem and works across the industry on fraud prevention, phone number intelligence, identity, and collaboration between telecom and financial services. Key Takeaway Fighting scams isn't only about stopping a bad call or message. It's also about protecting the trust that allows people and legitimate organizations to communicate. Rebuilding that trust will require collaboration across industries—and will happen one call and one message at a time. About the Host - Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm. Through her work at RangersAI and her advisory for the Global Anti-Scam Alliance and Stop Scams Alliance, Ayelet works with financial institutions and industry leaders to advance a more human-centered approach to scam prevention. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/ To learn more about RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

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  Episode #20

  When Logic Isn't Enough: The Role of Empathy in Fighting Scams, A conversation with Dr. Trina Clayeaux, CEO of Give an Hour

  Sep 2, 202641 minS2

  What happens when someone is so deeply caught in a scam that facts and logic no longer reach them? In this episode of Scam Rangers, host Ayelet Biger Levin sits down with Dr. Trina Clayeux, CEO of Give an Hour, to explore the emotional and psychological impact of scams and why empathy is so important in prevention, intervention and recovery. When someone is in the middle of a scam, they may be under intense pressure, emotionally invested or deeply manipulated. Simply telling them, “This is a scam,” may not work. Trina introduces a powerful green, yellow and red framework for understanding a victim’s emotional state. If someone is in the red, bringing more logic may only push them further away. Instead, we need to recognize where they are, slow things down and adapt how we communicate. “Trust is the connective tissue to all of this.” The conversation also looks at the broader scam lifecycle, from early intervention to financial institution response, recovery and healing. Because scams are not only financial crimes. They can leave victims struggling with shame, isolation, loss of trust and increased vulnerability to repeat scams. Ultimately, fighting scams requires more than detection. It requires understanding human behavior and meeting people where they are. In this episode Why logic alone may not stop a scam The green, yellow and red emotional framework How empathy can improve scam intervention Building trust without shaming the customer The emotional impact of scams Preventing repeat victimization Connecting prevention, recovery and healing About the guest Dr. Trina Clayeux is CEO of Give an Hour, a national social impact organization focused on mental health and supporting people impacted by human caused trauma. Give an Hour provides clinical support, peer support, education and training, including programs focused on the psychological and emotional impact of fraud and scams. https://giveanhour.org/ About the host Ayelet Biger Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI, the company behind ScamRanger. With more than 15 years in fraud prevention and cybersecurity, she is an Ambassador for the Global Anti Scam Alliance and host of Scam Rangers, exploring how we can better protect people and fight scams. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/ To learn more about RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

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  Episode #19

  Confronting the Yahoo Boys: A Blueprint for Fighting Back, A conversation with Erin West and Paul Raffile

  Aug 19, 202647 minS2

  What happens when investigators follow a scam all the way to the people behind it? In this episode of Scam Rangers , host Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with Erin West , founder of Operation Shamrock and former prosecutor, and cybercrime researcher Paul Raffile to hear the incredible story of their investigation into financial sextortion. Erin and Paul created a decoy social media profile posing as a teenage boy and quickly became targets of a sextortion scam. They followed the digital trail, built a blueprint of the network, and traveled to Nigeria to find the people behind it. There, they interviewed scammers, worked with local partners and law enforcement, explored the role of juju rituals in some scam operations, and ultimately confronted the suspected scammer they had tracked. “We came here to find you. We’re two investigators.” What they discovered raises bigger questions about how we fight scams. Detection and prevention matter , but what about deterrence and consequences? When the scammers themselves were asked what could stop more people from committing these crimes, their answer was striking: more arrests. In this episode Inside a real-world financial sextortion investigation Following the trail from social media to Nigeria Building a blueprint of the criminal network What scammers revealed about how they operate The role of juju rituals in some scam operations Confronting the suspected scammer Why deterrence and enforcement matter What law enforcement and industry need to do differently About the guests Erin West is the founder of Operation Shamrock and a former Deputy District Attorney who spent 26 years prosecuting crime, including eight years investigating high-tech and cryptocurrency-enabled crime. https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinnordbywest/ Paul Raffile is a cybercrime researcher specializing in transnational organized crime and financial sextortion, with a background in government intelligence, corporate intelligence and digital investigations. https://www.linkedin.com/in/raffile/ About the host Ayelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI , the company behind ScamRanger. With more than 15 years in fraud prevention and cybersecurity, she is an Ambassador for the Global Anti-Scam Alliance and host of Scam Rangers , exploring how we can better protect people and fight scams. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/ To learn more about RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

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  Episode #18

  You Can't Fight What You Don't Measure, A conversation with Ken Westbrook, Founder and CEO of Stop Scams Alliance

  Aug 5, 202636 minS2

  What if one of the biggest reasons we’re struggling to fight scams is that we don’t fully understand the scale of the problem? In this episode of Scam Rangers , Ayelet Biger-Levin welcomes back Ken Westbrook, founder of Stop Scams Alliance and former CIA analyst, to discuss why scams should be treated as a national security threat, and why doing that starts with better data. Ken shares the story behind Stop Scams Alliance’s collaboration with Gallup and what the new research reveals about scam victimization in America. The findings paint a troubling picture: roughly one in four Americans report having been scammed, nearly three-quarters of victims say the experience negatively affected their mental health or well-being, and 98% of U.S. adults believe scams pose a threat. The conversation goes beyond the numbers to explore what needs to happen next: the role financial institutions can play in scam intelligence and reporting, how technology and AI can strengthen defenses, the need for greater public-private collaboration, and what it would actually mean to treat scams as a national security priority. In this episode: Why traditional reporting doesn’t capture the true scale of scams What the Gallup research reveals about victims and the impact of scams Why financial institutions could play a larger role in scam intelligence How AI is changing both scam attacks and defenses Why stronger collaboration across government and industry is critical Why we need consistent measurement to know whether we’re actually making progress Link to the Gallup survey: https://www.gallup.com/analytics/711827/scams-in-america.aspx About Ken Westbrook Ken Westbrook is the founder of Stop Scams Alliance, a nonprofit bringing together stakeholders across the scam ecosystem to improve how the U.S. prevents and responds to scams. Before founding the organization, Ken spent 33 years at the CIA as an analyst — experience that now shapes his approach to understanding and combating scams as an organized, evolving threat. Stop scams Alliance: https://www.stopscamsalliance.org/ About the Host Ayelet Biger-Levin is the founder and CEO of RangersAI and host of the Scam Rangers podcast. A fraud and cybersecurity expert with more than 20 years of experience, she has held leadership roles at companies including IBM, RSA Security and BioCatch. Through Scam Rangers , Ayelet brings together experts from financial services, technology, behavioral science, law enforcement and policy to explore how scams work, why people fall victim, and what we can do to build greater scam resilience. www.rangersai.com Follow Ayelet on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

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