The swift electronic promotion of the fraudulent Boston Wedding Expo reveals that consumers and established small businesses can easily become a victim of con-artists who leverage technological communication tools, extensive social media networks as well as avidly followed blogs. Viral marketing of URLs and coupons has also contributed to the fraud.

Reflect on your own purchasing behavior. How much do you rely on blogs, feedbacks, websites, when you make your own purchase decision. Do you blindly rely on these sources of information? What types of marketing tools and techniques were leveraged by the con-artists to pull off this scam?

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€¢ Describe the process that was used to conduct the crime.

€¢ The role of Internet Marketing in this crime. Tools used for designing the web site, promoting the Expo, collecting payments, etc.

€¢ Is there any way to prevent such Internet Marketing crimes?