Scammers are everywhere around the world, diving into diverse aspects of life as they explore new ways to scam people, and that's why we need to be proactive about our safety and security, because scammers aren't only online; we've them in the physical, too. And personally I've made it a point of duty to protect myself against every possible scam that could come my way so that I won't fall victim, because in our struggles and challenges we might get overly enticed by some of the tricks of these scammers, and before you know it, one will fall victim.
When it comes to things I do to protect myself from scammers, the first thing is to work on my own intelligence, thereby making sure I'm twice as smart as I used to be. Continuous learning helps me learn new things, including new ways scammers operate. Secondly, I also work on myself, but in this aspect it's about being content. I make sure I'm contented with what I have so that I won't get carried away by the enticing tricks of the scammers that could make it easy for anyone to fall victim to their evil plans and agenda. Lastly, I abstain from clicking any phishing or suspicious links; that's one of the important ways of staying safe from scammers.
I've, on several occasions, encountered scammers, especially online, and what usually happens in all cases I've experienced to date is that I somehow escape their tricks to the point where some even get angry because I usually act like their trick is working on me, but when it gets to the part where I pay, send valuable information or click a phishing link, I'll just keep giving them different excuses until they can't take it any longer.
Talking about the most common type of scam that's out there, I really don't know, but I think identity theft is trending at the moment with the use of artificial intelligence that even makes it easier for them to fool people who aren't observant and people who always verify things multiple times before jumping to conclusions, because this technology has made it easier for them to do literally different believable things that could get one caught, and that's why we must be one step ahead of them when it comes to smartness.