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The Art of the Con: How to Think Like a Real Hustler and Avoid Being Scammed
A sucker is still born every minute. In this modern and interconnected world, con-men are lurking everywhere – it’s never been easier for them to dupe us, take from us, and infiltrate our lives. One of the world’s leading and celebrated experts on con-games takes the reader through the history of cons, how they’ve been updated to the modern age, how they work, how to spot them, and how to protect yourself from being the victim of one. R. Paul Wilson is a con-man who works for the other side – our side. He has spent a lifetime learning, performing, studying, and teaching about the ins and outs of the con world in order to open up our eyes to the dangers lurking about us – and to show us how not to get taken. Paul has never made a living as a con-man, profiting off of marks – he has used his expertise throughout his life to help people avoid cons. In this fascinating book, Paul takes the reader through the history and developments of the con game, what elements from the past are based on basic human psychology and have stood the test of time, what has been updated for the modern era and how it’s getting used in the computer age, the structure of how these cons work, and – most importantly - how to recognize one, protect yourself and your loved ones, and avoid becoming just another sucker.
368 pages, Hardcover
First published November 4, 2014
40 people are currently reading
308 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 6, 2017
I was looking for a good book on cons and con artists.
I have to say, it's really good. It's written by R. Paul Wilson, a man who has studied confidence games his entire life, and has produced, started in, and written TV shows about cons.
He breaks down the various types of cons from the short con that happens when someone walks up to you, to the mid game where you're hooked into a situation, and the "big game" cons that take thousands of dollars from people.
Not only does he break some of them down, he runs the reader through how he pulled those exact scams on his various shows.
He even gets into the thinking of a con artist. In his view, and I would have to agree with it, that all con artists are motivated singularly by the desire for money. They're after the money, and they're ready to do and say whatever it takes to get it. They'll sacrafice everything- even their relationships- to get more money. And they'll blame you for letting them get away with it.
He also says that he'll get into why people fall for the cons, but I feel like he's less successful here. This is why I rate it 4 stars out of 5. He suggests rather than categorically states, that people fall for cons because they're stupid or greedy, but because manipulated by social expectations and by the con artists.
I agree with all of those, but I also think that a fair number of people think they're smarter than the con that they're faced with. Like, take 3 Card Monty. You can see that the game is rigged just by watching it for 3 seconds. But it's easy to think everyone else is a sucker and we're the one person who can pull this one out.
But overall, this is a really good book to read up on cons, how they work, and how the people who pull them think. If you're looking for a book like that, I recommend this one.
I have to say, it's really good. It's written by R. Paul Wilson, a man who has studied confidence games his entire life, and has produced, started in, and written TV shows about cons.
He breaks down the various types of cons from the short con that happens when someone walks up to you, to the mid game where you're hooked into a situation, and the "big game" cons that take thousands of dollars from people.
Not only does he break some of them down, he runs the reader through how he pulled those exact scams on his various shows.
He even gets into the thinking of a con artist. In his view, and I would have to agree with it, that all con artists are motivated singularly by the desire for money. They're after the money, and they're ready to do and say whatever it takes to get it. They'll sacrafice everything- even their relationships- to get more money. And they'll blame you for letting them get away with it.
He also says that he'll get into why people fall for the cons, but I feel like he's less successful here. This is why I rate it 4 stars out of 5. He suggests rather than categorically states, that people fall for cons because they're stupid or greedy, but because manipulated by social expectations and by the con artists.
I agree with all of those, but I also think that a fair number of people think they're smarter than the con that they're faced with. Like, take 3 Card Monty. You can see that the game is rigged just by watching it for 3 seconds. But it's easy to think everyone else is a sucker and we're the one person who can pull this one out.
But overall, this is a really good book to read up on cons, how they work, and how the people who pull them think. If you're looking for a book like that, I recommend this one.
January 7, 2015
A fun read.
November 16, 2020
Opened my mind and a new interest! Mr. Paul Wilson delivers the importance of understanding the con and the conman excellently! It doesn’t dive too deep into the details of certain cons, but it does give enough examples to illustrate how every con and trick uses the same principles and plays on the same human nature.
October 1, 2018
Great source to make you think
The author does a nice job of keeping the reader hooked with excellent storytelling. I docked a star because it was repetitive at times, but otherwise fantastic!
The author does a nice job of keeping the reader hooked with excellent storytelling. I docked a star because it was repetitive at times, but otherwise fantastic!
November 23, 2015
Die ersten Con Artists habe ich am 11.11.89 gesehen. Auf dem "Polenmarkt" waren Hütchenspieler unterwegs, und es roch Meilen gegen den Wind nach Betrug. Und doch zogen sie meinen zwei Freunden ihre 200 Mark Begrüßungsgeld ab. Hütchenspieler, Deckenverkäufer, Vermieter von Wohnungen, die niemandem gehören. Der Grat zwischen jemandem etwas aufschwatzen und Großbetrug ist grau. Und diese Sphäre behandelt dieses Buch.
Ich bin hin und her gerissen. Einerseits ist das Thema faszinierend. Wer findet nicht auch ein bisschen Gefallen an Hochstaplern wie Krull, Postel, Abagnale? Andererseits scheint mir die Realität dieser Schwindler und Trickbetrüger doch ziemlich trist. Ich musste an dieses Ringewerfen im Rummel im Plänterwald denken. Schon als Kind war mir klar: Hier wird nie jemand gewinnen, man müsste die Ringe schon regelrecht über die Blöcke pressen. Und dann schaute ich in die gelangweilten Gesichter der Betreiber dieser Bude, die, eine Zigarette zwischen die Lippen geklemmt, mit einer Art Zeigestock die Ringe wieder aufsammelten und auf neue Kunden warteten. Auf Youtube sah ich neulich ein Filmchen des deutschen Ablegers von Wilsons "Real Hustle". Drei Betrüger verbrachten einen Tag damit, Wurstetiketten auf "bio" zu fälschen, um sie am nächsten Tag auf dem Boxhagener Platz zu verkaufen. Wenn das ein tatsächlicher Schwindel sein soll, ist das doch wirklich armselig: Mindestens vier Tage Arbeit für Kauf der billigen Würste, Fälschung von Dokumenten und Etiketten, Neuetikettierung der Würste, Miete des Autos, Verkauf der Würste. Der Gewinn kann kaum mehr gewesen sein als der von richtigen Biobauern, nur mit der Gefahr des Entdecktwerdens. Eine schlechte Arbeit, schlechtes Gewissen, Risiko.
Und ebenso liest sich dann auch das Buch. Man hat die ganze Zeit das Gefühl, armseligen Existenzen bei aufwändigen Betrügen zuzuschauen.
Wirklich interessant ist natürlich die Psychologie des Betrogenen. Was zieht einen an? Wann greift man zu? Was hält einen davon ab, den Betrug auffliegen zu lassen? Und dann fiel es mir wieder ein: 1997 in New York. Straßenhändler verkauften Marken-Walkmen zu Tiefpreisen. Ich griff zu, kaufte Batterien, legte in der U-Bahn eine Kassette ein, es funktionierte nicht. Ich überlegte kurz, ob es bei dem niedrigen Preis wert wäre, zurückzufahren, und tatsächlich tat ich es, beschwerte mich über den defekten Walkman. Der Verkäufer, ein muskulöser, schlechtgelaunter, schwarzer Typ nahm ihn umstandslos zurück und gab mir einen anderen. Der, wie ich wieder in der U-Bahn bemerkte, natürlich auch kaputt war. Und diesmal beschwerte ich mich nicht.
Ich bin hin und her gerissen. Einerseits ist das Thema faszinierend. Wer findet nicht auch ein bisschen Gefallen an Hochstaplern wie Krull, Postel, Abagnale? Andererseits scheint mir die Realität dieser Schwindler und Trickbetrüger doch ziemlich trist. Ich musste an dieses Ringewerfen im Rummel im Plänterwald denken. Schon als Kind war mir klar: Hier wird nie jemand gewinnen, man müsste die Ringe schon regelrecht über die Blöcke pressen. Und dann schaute ich in die gelangweilten Gesichter der Betreiber dieser Bude, die, eine Zigarette zwischen die Lippen geklemmt, mit einer Art Zeigestock die Ringe wieder aufsammelten und auf neue Kunden warteten. Auf Youtube sah ich neulich ein Filmchen des deutschen Ablegers von Wilsons "Real Hustle". Drei Betrüger verbrachten einen Tag damit, Wurstetiketten auf "bio" zu fälschen, um sie am nächsten Tag auf dem Boxhagener Platz zu verkaufen. Wenn das ein tatsächlicher Schwindel sein soll, ist das doch wirklich armselig: Mindestens vier Tage Arbeit für Kauf der billigen Würste, Fälschung von Dokumenten und Etiketten, Neuetikettierung der Würste, Miete des Autos, Verkauf der Würste. Der Gewinn kann kaum mehr gewesen sein als der von richtigen Biobauern, nur mit der Gefahr des Entdecktwerdens. Eine schlechte Arbeit, schlechtes Gewissen, Risiko.
Und ebenso liest sich dann auch das Buch. Man hat die ganze Zeit das Gefühl, armseligen Existenzen bei aufwändigen Betrügen zuzuschauen.
Wirklich interessant ist natürlich die Psychologie des Betrogenen. Was zieht einen an? Wann greift man zu? Was hält einen davon ab, den Betrug auffliegen zu lassen? Und dann fiel es mir wieder ein: 1997 in New York. Straßenhändler verkauften Marken-Walkmen zu Tiefpreisen. Ich griff zu, kaufte Batterien, legte in der U-Bahn eine Kassette ein, es funktionierte nicht. Ich überlegte kurz, ob es bei dem niedrigen Preis wert wäre, zurückzufahren, und tatsächlich tat ich es, beschwerte mich über den defekten Walkman. Der Verkäufer, ein muskulöser, schlechtgelaunter, schwarzer Typ nahm ihn umstandslos zurück und gab mir einen anderen. Der, wie ich wieder in der U-Bahn bemerkte, natürlich auch kaputt war. Und diesmal beschwerte ich mich nicht.
December 1, 2014
I'm a huge fan of Paul wilson, as a presenter from The Real Hustle, as well as a talented card magician, so I was excited to finally get this book.
He discusses certain types of cons like the Pigeon Drop, Bait and Switch, Change Raising etc and, as well as explaining these, he highlights the underlying principles that allow them to work. There is a particular emphasis on how the con artist will manipulate certain aspects of the marks character, like their levels of greed, naivety, compassion, trust and so on. For me, I found this really interesting in terms of analysing human emotion and interactions like a system (or as Wilson states at one point in the book, to look at these interactions like a puzzle or logic game).
As well as this he analyses and discusses the art of the con in a variety of contexts, from the classic street hustle, cheating at cards and at casinos, computer hacking, and to security systems in general.
I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to anyone interested or enthusiastic about cheating, con games and security systems.
He discusses certain types of cons like the Pigeon Drop, Bait and Switch, Change Raising etc and, as well as explaining these, he highlights the underlying principles that allow them to work. There is a particular emphasis on how the con artist will manipulate certain aspects of the marks character, like their levels of greed, naivety, compassion, trust and so on. For me, I found this really interesting in terms of analysing human emotion and interactions like a system (or as Wilson states at one point in the book, to look at these interactions like a puzzle or logic game).
As well as this he analyses and discusses the art of the con in a variety of contexts, from the classic street hustle, cheating at cards and at casinos, computer hacking, and to security systems in general.
I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to anyone interested or enthusiastic about cheating, con games and security systems.
June 6, 2016
Summed up, if it appears to be too good to be true it probably is; If someone values it another will devise some way to steal it; greed is the root deception and education can help avoid being scammed.
June 3, 2018
Wilson writes in a clear, friendly manner, but this book is too loosely organized to merit for than 3 stars.
The anecdotes are fun and the reading is light and conversational. The book lacks a sense of progression as you read from chapter to chapter.
The anecdotes are fun and the reading is light and conversational. The book lacks a sense of progression as you read from chapter to chapter.
January 28, 2019
Interesting book, that makes me think there are scams everyone around me. It never hurts to be a little more paranoid I guess..
I would have liked more reference books to read in more detail, but only one was named by name unfortunately.
I would have liked more reference books to read in more detail, but only one was named by name unfortunately.
March 4, 2015
I want to try change-raising on someone! It seems too easy to actually work!
May 20, 2016
Part 1 was a little slow but Part 2 was interesting. The amount of effort that some put into the Con is amazing.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews