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More than average, people in the gay community look out for each other. Alas, that fact gets exploited time and again by scammers looking to con money out of the unwary. Often it works like this: someone calls and claims to be in your circle of friends or associates-- and in serious trouble. Won't you wire money to help? In one of the latest outbreaks of this scam, dozens of Guide advertisers have been targeted over the past month by a man (or men) apparently operating from Toronto.

Starting in mid-April, one or more scammers has been phoning businesses that advertise in the magazine, claiming to be a Guide ad rep. The caller says he's been beaten and robbed, is stranded, and needs funds sent right away by Western Union. The caller sounds distressed-- and invariably not like the person he's impersonating. If he's called on that detail, the scammer attributes his odd voice to facial injuries. And if the target expresses any doubts, the scammer relates details about the business-- picked up from The Guide or other sources-- to indicate he's really who he says. As well, he'll inventively fold back into his story any details the would-be victim inadvertently relates. The scammer will insist on having money wired to him right away because, in some versions, he's at the airport and rushing to catch the last plane home.

In the incidents so far, the scammer says he's calling from Toronto. For at least some of the calls he has used a phone at the Church and Wellesley subway stop, in Toronto's gay neighborhood.

An old trick

In the past, scammers have used variations of this method on gay guesthouse owners, AIDS activists, and within the leather community-- with the caller claiming to be someone in trouble who's, say, a fellow guesthouse owner or a leather titlist. Even though these frauds have been widely reported, in the heat of the moment and wanting to help out, people still fall for them.

Though it may be little consolation for those who have wired money-- and, in this case, some have-- scams like these tend to be self-limiting. The network of relationships that scammers exploit to steal money this way also assures that news of the fraud spreads quickly.

Toronto police have said they are working on the case. If you get such a call from someone appearing to be in Toronto, consider letting them know. But scams such as this can be run from anywhere. In theory, in this age of omnipresent security cameras, identifying someone who has picked up money at a Western Union agent should be easy. But the reality is that authorities generally won't follow up.

So mostly, you have to protect yourself. If such a scammer calls you, hang up or put him on hold-- which makes him think you are tracing his call. If someone calls impersonating a Guide representative seeking help, let us know. And don't send money, this time-- or whenever this scam, in some slightly new variation, comes around again.