“Anywhere you find the combination of great need and ignorance, you’ll likely see predatory ads. Why, specifically, were they targeting these folks? Vulnerability is worth gold. The customers’ ignorance, of course, is a crucial piece of the puzzle. Once the ignorance is established, the key for the recruiter, just as for the snake-oil merchant, is to locate the most vulnerable people and then use their private information against them. This involves finding where they suffer the most, which is known as the “pain point.” It might be low self-esteem, the stress of raising kids in a neighborhood of warring gangs, or perhaps a drug addiction. Many people unwittingly disclose their pain points when they look for answers on Google or, later, when they fill out college questionnaires.”