Do you know the difference between fraud and a scam? Many believe they are the same thing because they both cause harm to innocent people. A scam is usually a scheme or transaction that costs the victim loss of money or property. For example, they ask for money for a charity that doesn't exist or try to sell something that doesn't belong to them. People who commit these types of scams are called fraudsters. On the other hand, fraud is more of a deception. Fraud is when a person's trust is violated. People who commit fraud do so for money, to discredit others with lies, or to gain prestige, these people are known as fraudsters. Fraud is considered a serious crime while a scam is considered minor in comparison. An example of fraud is creating a scheme to take one's life savings. Some of the biggest scams were those of the Mona Lisa; this is where a man paid a thief to steal the Mona Lisa; then sold copies of the painting. With the painting missing, the buyers thought they were getting the real painting. Since they couldn't tell anyone that they had bought the painting, this scam worked well for Argentinian Eduardo de Valfierno who paid to have the masterpiece stolen. The sale of New York monuments; George Parker convinced tourists that they could buy famous landmarks such as Madison Square Garden, the Statue of Liberty, and the Brooklyn Bridge; Parker was eventually arrested and sentenced to life in Sing Sing Prison. The sale of the Eiffel Tower; we know that France has difficulty ensuring the maintenance of the Eiffel Tower, Victor Lustig convinces a scrap dealer that he can buy it; the dealer gave him a huge deposit. When the dealer found out he had been scammed, he was too embarrassed to turn the scam into... middle of paper... too. Anyone who would prey on the weak and vulnerable and destroy lives falls into the same class of evil and unethical predators. Forbes. Np, and Web. March 2, 2014. “‘Nigerian 419’ Scams.” SCAMwatch at home. Np, and Web. March 2, 2014. "The 10 biggest impostors in history (scammers, impostors) - ODDEE." Oddée. Np, and Web. March 2, 2014. “10 Ways to Avoid Consumer Information Fraud.” » Np, Web. March 2, 2014. "7 of the Biggest Scams of All Time | LiveScience." LiveScience.com. Np, and Web. March 2, 2014. “Connection – The New York Times. » The New York Times - Breaking news, world news and multimedia. Np, and Web. March 2, 2014 “FBI — Common Fraud Schemes.” FBI. Np, and Web. March 2, 2014. “Tax Frauds/Consumer Alerts.” Internal Revenue Service. Np, and Web. March 2. 2014.