{"id":14932,"date":"2021-11-26T13:27:07","date_gmt":"2021-11-26T13:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/?p=14932"},"modified":"2022-04-28T13:23:48","modified_gmt":"2022-04-28T13:23:48","slug":"how-much-dont-fall-for-these-european-street-scams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/how-much-dont-fall-for-these-european-street-scams\/","title":{"rendered":"How much?! Don\u2019t fall for these European street scams"},"content":{"rendered":"Approx read: <\/span> 3<\/span> mins<\/span><\/span>

mark (noun): a person who is easily deceived or taken advantage of.<\/em><\/h2>\n

True story: I was once strolling along the banks of the River Seine, Paris, when I came across several tables offering games of \u2018three-card monte\u2019 \u2013 the notorious sleight-of-hand scam where participants attempt to follow an ace playing card as it\u2019s mixed amongst two kings to win a cash prize (spoiler alert, you don\u2019t win).<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/a>As I passed the first table, a young guy standing beside his girlfriend was playing. What a dupe, I thought, as he pointed to a card, only to see the game operator turn it over to reveal the ace, and promptly hand over a crisp \u20ac20 note. Huh, I thought.<\/p>\n

A few yards later, the second table, and another \u2018mark\u2019 was trying his luck. Again, I passed just as he confidently pointed to a card \u2013 and again, the operator turned it over to reveal the ace. What are the chances, I thought.<\/p>\n

As I came to the third and final table as yet another<\/em> player chose a card and – you guessed it, won \u2013 it hit me: Oh, I\u2019m<\/em> the mark.<\/p>\n

As entertaining as this coordinated bit of street theatre was, it also highlights the sophistication of street scams targeting tourists in European capitals and beyond. Three-card monte may be a grift as old as time, but it\u2019s not the only way to part you with your well-earned cash.<\/p>\n

Here are some other common street scams to watch out for. Remember, if it feels too good to be true, it most probably is.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Stranded gold seller<\/h4>\n

Popular at service stations or anywhere people fill up their vehicles, this scam involves a poor individual unable to get to their destination after losing their wallet. However, they\u2019re not looking for handouts. Out of sheer desperation, they\u2019re willing to sell you a genuine piece of gold jewellery (watch, ring, bracelet, necklace etc) for a bargain-basement price. Of course, you\u2019ll soon discover that you\u2019ve just paid \u20ac50 for a few grams of copper. And they\u2019ve already moved onto the next mark.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Friendship bracelet scam<\/h4>\n

Friendship between nations is a beautiful thing. And what better way to celebrate it than by a complete stranger coming up to you in the street and attempting to forcibly tie a colourful bracelet around your wrist. You may protest (I mean, it looks like a scam, right) but they\u2019ll insist: it\u2019s a gift, don\u2019t worry. Trust me, this is a gift you\u2019re going to be paying for as you frantically attempt to undo the tight knot and return it to your new bestie.<\/p>\n

Petition scam<\/h4>\n

Do you support the deaf? What about the blind? And you wouldn\u2019t forget the orphans, right? Well, just sign this simple petition and you can go about your day. Oh, you didn\u2019t realise there was a mandatory donation to accompany your signature? This scam exploits the sympathetic urge to help out with a simple gesture. Note, the money will not be used for the less well off. And you may well be pickpocketed as you engage with the scammer.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Fake designer goods<\/h4>\n

Let me give you a little tip: Gucci, Armani, Versace et al are rarely sold from the back of a car. So when a \u2018designer goods retailer\u2019 just back from a trade show with a boot load of suits, scarves and skirts offers to offload a few choice items for rock-bottom prices, you\u2019re being scammed. Get yourself to a legitimate designer outlet or accept that your budget is more suited to Primark than Prada.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

mark (noun): a person who is easily deceived or taken advantage of. True story: I was once strolling along the banks of the River Seine, Paris, when I came across several tables offering games of \u2018three-card monte\u2019 \u2013 the notorious sleight-of-hand scam where participants attempt to follow an ace playing card as it\u2019s mixed amongst […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":14938,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[298],"tags":[1107],"class_list":["post-14932","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-tips","tag-how-to-stay-safe"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14932","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14932"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14932\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14942,"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14932\/revisions\/14942"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14932"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14932"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.battleface.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14932"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}