Vicky Nguyen
Appearances
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
Hey, Vicky. Hey, Andrea. Love talking about vacations.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
That is so true. In fact, there's a brand new scam I want to tell you about, Andrea, that I just heard about. It was through a friend of a friend who said she was working with what she thought was a legitimate travel agent. This person would say, book your travel through me. I will put it on my, quote, corporate card, and that's how you get the discounts. And this victim told friends.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
They told family. And over the course of a year or so, people were booking vacations that were extremely discounted, and they were paying via Zelle to this travel agent.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
And now this woman has up and left. And those vacations were never booked. Now, this is something I am in the process of investigating. I had never heard of a scam like this before. But I have talked to multiple victims who say they're kind of left holding the bag because what the banks will say is you willingly transferred this money to someone.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
So my first piece of advice is if the price is too good to be true, be very, very careful. It's not just price. It's also how are they asking you to pay? Are they asking you to pay with a gift card, with Venmo or Zelle or Cash App, some kind of peer-to-peer payment system that may not have the kinds of protections as a credit card? I would be very, very wary. So...
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
Yes. Keep in mind that five-star experience, luxury, these are just marketing words that companies can add to their websites, and they can look for beautiful stock photos of any destination. So in order to verify if this is real, do your homework. That means entering the name of the company, the name of the hotel property, and the word review. That's how you will find what people are saying.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
Yes, this is legit or no, this is not. And I would also recommend booking travel through reputable sources using a travel agent. Usually they only charge a very small fee and they have actual boots on the ground knowledge of the destinations that you're curious about.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
Make sure you know what the cancellation policies are. And if there is a 24-hour cancellation period, I like to set a reminder in my phone. That reminder lets you know, cancel before this time, before you get charged. It's also really important to call, asking some questions to confirm the property. I think especially when you're using a peer-to-peer site like Airbnb or Vrbo.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
This happened to us one time. We thought we were getting a great deal on a hotel room, but as we were getting closer, you know, we weren't getting the details sent to us. So we made a couple of extra calls and it turns out that wasn't really a listing. That place didn't actually exist. And this happened to you? My husband booked it. But thankfully, we started thinking, you know what?
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
Maybe this is hinky. And so we canceled it.
Dateline NBC
Emotional testimony from a killer. A murder defendant's unusual defense. And travel scam safety tips.
If the price is too good to be true and you are not using your credit card, which has a lot of fraud protection, be very, very careful.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
You know, the FBI just issued a warning about this, saying it's actually a scam that has been going on since March of last year. It is alarming because people are getting very legitimate-looking texts on their phones saying, hey, you have unpaid tolls. You need to click here and pay your overdue bill. Tell us how the scammers reacted. It's called smishing, which is a riff on phishing.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
So phishing is when you get an email from a scammer that says, hey, click here, do this or that. Smishing means the scam is coming in through your text. You get a link and they say, click on this link because you have an unpaid bill. You're going to get late fees.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
and there's an urgency to it, what they really want to do is get you to click on the link and get your personal information, your credit card details, your banking information, and download something called malware onto your devices, which is software that is designed to invade your computer or your phone. So never tap on a link that you get.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
If for some reason you think this could be legitimate, go to your state toll website or call the 800 number that's on your bill. Look it up online and go to the site. Never tap on a foreign link that's sent to you.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
You know, it's unclear how they are targeting the victims, Andrea, but these days on the dark web, a lot of our data is floating out there that's been involved in hacks of major companies, right? And so that means that your personal information is out there to go to the highest bidder.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
And a lot of times they are entering this information into some sort of automated system that can just push out a bunch of texts. And they're just hoping that a small percentage of those people tap on those links and then, boom, the hackers have access to your banking accounts and they can rack up a bunch of charges or try to drain your bank account.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
Exactly. And often there's an amount due, right? It's a number that looks like it could be legitimate. We're often in a hurry. We tap on things before we even think about it. And so my advice is always pause before you tap. Click anything. Think to yourself, does this look legit? Just remember, the government, they're all about the snail mail.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
So anytime you get something that's like a phone call or an email or a text, you should be extra suspicious.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
Yeah, so if you have clicked on it and you did pay this money, you do want to report it immediately to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center. That website is ic3.gov. So ic3.gov. And you can at least file a complaint. I would also advise you to go to your credit card company. Hopefully, they can either stop the payment or reverse the charge and give you a new credit card.
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
And I should say you should probably put a freeze on your credits. or maybe sign up for a credit monitoring system because what else did they get access to in that time in terms of your identity?
Dateline NBC
Audio of a jailhouse sting. A woman's third murder trial in three decades. And the latest on a new texting scam.
They're just hoping that a small percentage of those people tap on those links and then boom, the hackers have access to your banking accounts.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
GoFundMe actually has this centralized hub for all of its fundraisers related to the wildfire, and their trust and safety team has verified that. So you can go to that hub to make sure the fund that you're trying to donate to is legitimate.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
They do have a money-back guarantee for your peace of mind, but they also say, please, use your common sense, not just for this disaster, but for all GoFundMe accounts that are set up. So some tips. Donate to fundraisers where you directly know someone or it's a friend of a friend. That way, at least you have a connection.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
If it's a stranger, you want to look at the description and make sure it has information about the organizer and their actual relationship to the beneficiaries. And this one's a little trickier, but if you know how to go on Google and use a reverse image search, Google will allow you to look up the images on that GoFundMe to see if those are just stock photos.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
Almost like catfishing, Vicki, in a way.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
Exactly. They use these great images that really tug on your heartstrings. And then you realize, oh, this is from like 2009. And honestly, it just takes a moment, right, to do a quick Google search. Has this GoFundMe or this organization been written about by reputable news outlets?
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
The first thing they need to do is understand what the benefits are that they're eligible for. People can get assistance from FEMA. They can get help with short-term rent, with lodging, like if they need to stay at a hotel or somewhere. and rebuilding. But you do need to reach out to the government. FEMA's website is there for you to go and fill out those applications.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
But you need to make sure that the people you are interacting with really are from the federal government.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
Yeah, be very careful if you're getting a phone call from a random number, right? Scammers will pose as callers from FEMA. Sometimes, Andrea, they will spoof FEMA's number to make it look like it's coming from FEMA. So if anyone is calling to ask you for your personal financial information— that is a red flag.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
This is on you to reach out to the government, not for someone to call and solicit that information from you, right? Also, if someone comes to you, maybe you're going through the belongings you have at your home and they show up, you want to ask, what is your government ID? A FEMA jacket, that's not enough. You can buy that online and put that on. They should have a registration number as well.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
If you've already set up your account, you're going through the process, they should be able to verify information to you, not vice versa. If you are applying for aid through FEMA, you don't have to pay anything. It is free. You do not have to pay an application fee at all. If someone's trying to charge you, that is a scam. Same for any sort of inspection from FEMA. That is free.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
What I want people to know is contractors will be out. People will be soliciting business. But what you want to do is make sure you get their name, their phone number, their license number. And you can look up whether or not they are a licensed contractor in the area where you're rebuilding because taking the time to do that research will save you so much heartache later on.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
We're so grateful for the opportunity to talk about this. So I want people to be empowered with this information and just do a gut check. Always pause. Get a second opinion before you ever give out your personal information or pay a penny to anyone.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
Thank you.
Dateline NBC
A verdict in Chattanooga. A widow accused of murder. And how to avoid natural disaster scammers.
Just do a gut check, always pause, get a second opinion before you ever give out your personal information or pay a penny to anyone.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
Hey, Andrea, always great to be with you. Happy New Year.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
At the most basic level, Andrea, think of it as technology that allows computers to do the kinds of tasks that would normally require us to tell them and require some sort of human intervention and decision-making. Now the computers can do some of this on their own. And then they can predict what they're supposed to do next.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
And that's considered learning, which is where the intelligence part comes in. AI is used all the time in things that we take for granted, like when your phone unlocks using your face or when you're sending an email and that predictive texting comes up saying, is this how you want to finish your sentence? That's all AI.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
And of course, as you mentioned, there's really sophisticated types of AI, like what we saw with the chatbot, where You're entering in conversational language, and it seems like this computer is responding to you in a human way.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
Really, all it's doing is using all of the information and data that's been put into it from previous human conversations and predicting that this is the response that will make the most sense to you.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
I was just talking to the cybersecurity experts at Human Security about the holidays, where a lot of online shopping sites pop up that are totally bogus. They're just designed to tell you this is where you can get the hottest item at the lowest price, hoping that that's going to be enough bait for you to enter in your credit card or your banking information.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
Well, back in the day, Andrea, humans had to make those websites. Now, bots and AI-powered computers can create those websites very quickly. They can also send out phishing and smishing messages. That's when you get an email or a text sent to your phone saying, hey, there's been a problem with your package delivery, or hey, this is the government. We need you to check on your taxes. Click here.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
a lot of that content is now being generated by AI, which makes it that much easier for the bad guys to pump out that bad information.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
Because the deep fake technology is becoming so good, but it's basically referring to a type of artificial intelligence that generates audio, images, and now even videos that make it appear that someone is doing something or saying something that they aren't. We've seen this used in some of the most disgusting and creepy ways from generating nude images, celebrity images to endorse products.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
People have to be very careful when they're on social media. Is this something that this celebrity would actually be doing? And also be on the lookout for deep fakes when it comes to law enforcement or people impersonating government officials.
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
So a lot of times these deepfakes are spread on social media like Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook. When it comes to these deepfakes with video, face swapping is a very common way this is done. So if you're carefully looking at the video and you think, gosh, this face is too perfect and this message...
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
isn't in character with who you are seeing this from, or if the messaging is very extreme or shocking or unbelievable. These are moments where you've got to take a step back, look at the context and decide, is this actually credible?
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
According to a Google Cloud 2025 cybersecurity forecast, AI is going to be going up against AI. And it makes sense. You need powerful technology to help you detect AI scams, defend against them. So we're seeing this shift in AI tools being used at the corporate level to improve response to AI threats. So 2025 for us is...
Dateline NBC
Cases to watch in 2025: Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bryan Kohberger. Plus, safety tips for AI scams.
A lot of that content is now being generated by AI, which makes it that much easier for the bad guys to pump out that bad information.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
The most basic thing, Andrea, is to lock your doors and windows. I know people want to say, oh, I live in this neighborhood. It's so great. We leave our doors unlocked. Well, there are bad guys and they may drive into your neighborhood. So the most basic, simple security thing that you can do is making sure you lock your doors and windows.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
If you are planning to leave for an extended period of time, talk to your neighbors. Let them know that you're going to be gone. The dates are Leave a key with them so that they can keep an eye on your property for you. Something else to think about. A lot of times people have home security systems, but they don't really use them when they're at home. Test it.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
Make sure that thing works and that you know that it's hooked up to your phone and it will alert you if something's going on at your home when you're gone. And finally, remember what you're posting on social media. Matters as well.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
We talk about this with our kids, but you don't need to post in real time your location because what you're doing is letting anybody who knows you know that you're not at your home. Save those vacation photos, those family photos for posting when you get back. Yeah.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
Yeah. These days, there are so many simple and inexpensive ways to do that when it comes to lighting. For example, installing some basic motion lights that just have lights coming on and off when someone walks by or walks onto your property. Another one is setting a light on a timer. I mean, you can buy these timers for under $20. They're relatively easy to install.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
And you just set them to go on and off at random times. That makes it look like someone's at home. Something else to always remember. for the magazine subscriptions, the newspapers, the mail. There are simple ways to pause delivery. Or if you've got that trusted neighbor, asking them to send a kid over for the week that you're gone to come by and collect your mail every day.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
And then finally, this tip I think is very interesting. Having a car parked in your driveway, moving in and out, definitely makes it seem like someone is home. Ideally, you're parking your car in your garage. That's the most secure. But maybe you have a neighbor who has a teenager who has an extra car and they're always parking it on the street.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
Offer up your driveway for the week or two that you're gone. That's a great way to make it look like someone's home and to protect your property.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
Well, number one, consider investing in one of those safes that you can put. And don't put it in your closet in your primary bedroom. Put it in an unexpected location because sometimes those burglars can take the entire safe with them. But it's good not just for when you're away. It's good for fireproofing documents as well as valuable, expensive jewelry.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
So getting a safe, putting your most valuable things into that safe out of sight is important. Another very simple thing to do, though, make sure that your laptop, your tablets, your car keys. are not within the visual sight line of anybody looking into your kitchen window or your living room window.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
Some people go so far as to move and rearrange their furniture so that you can't see their television or their valuable china that's in a cabinet. If you can do that, go for it. You might be inclined to just say, I'm not going to bother with any of this, Vicki. I'm just going to close my curtains. You don't want to actually close all of your curtains.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
That is a surefire sign to signal to burglars, hey, nobody's home. All their windows and curtains have been closed this entire time. So just strategically close some of them, the ones that are open. Make sure there's nothing of value within the sight line.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
Unplug your appliances. Not only is that safe in case there's a power surge, but it's also going to save you some money on your energy bill. The Fire Safety Research Institute also recommends closing every door in your home because that can slow down the spread of a fire. You can go on YouTube and see it.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
It's remarkable the difference between what happens inside a room when the door is closed versus when it's open.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
Great to be with you.
Dateline NBC
A "no body" murder trial in Mississippi. A Wisconsin dad fakes his death. Plus, keeping your home safe during the holidays.
You don't want to actually close all of your curtains. That is a surefire sign to signal to burglars, hey, nobody's home.