Cocky yuppies 'most prone to 419 scams'

High-achieving professionals are most likely to be conned by 419 scammers, while the poor are harder to trick because they do not trust their own judgment.

Research by Dutch financial intelligence organisation Ultrascan-Advanced Global Investigations revealed that professionals were frequently defrauded by 419 e-mail scammers, contrary to belief that the financially strapped are the most vulnerable.

"To perpetrate scams you need the victims to trust their own capabilities," the report said.

The research noted that doctors were especially vulnerable to scams that called for funds to help the less fortunate.

"A significant number of high-loss cases involved specialists such as psychiatrists, psychologists and neurosurgeons," the report said.

Investigators found that architects, engineers and white-collar professionals were conned by e-mail fraudsters, who lured them into contributing to fake ventures after obtaining their details from conference websites.

The report stated that 419 scammers netted $12.7-billion globally from victims last year.

Hawks spokesman Captain Paul Ramaloko said most South African victims conned by 419 scammers were "the middle class and high-achieving professionals".

Ramaloko said: "In the latest e-mail scam, recipients are told they could claim a large sum of money from a bank account holder who died from Ebola."