Forum Radio: Tracy Hall

Tracy Hall is a former speaker for Forum in Singapore, talking here to Jessica Fellowes about her devastating experience as ‘the last victim’ of serial conman Hamish McLaren, currently in jail for fraud estimated at the value of $60-80m worldwide. Tracy talks to Jessica Fellowes here about the financial and emotional fall out of realising that the love of her life, the man she knew as Max, had defrauded her of her life savings and broken her heart. 

There’s practical advice, too. How to keep healthy sceptism without becoming cynical, when it comes to enticing investment opportunities as well as simple tips to keep yourself safe from AI-led scams. (Use the default voicemail setting, for example, so that your voice can’t be ‘scraped’ and used to defraud others.)

‘What I do say to people is, when it comes to scams, and fraud, and financial crime, the most intelligent thing that we can do is to humbly accept that it could happen to us. And if you start at that place, then you're going to automatically be more vigilant and more aware.’

Tracy’s book, The Last Victim, will be published in the UK in October, and in the US early next year. Further information is on her website: tracyhall.com.au

Episode producer: Vanessa Heaney

Music by Alex Vickers