One of August’s joint Website of the Month winners was Project Barnum, your first port of call to avoid psychics’ scams. Project Barnum is definitely a different kind of website, so we caught up with founder Hayley Stevens to find out more.

Tell us a bit about yourself and Project Barnum.

In my teens I got involved in paranormal research as someone who believed in ghosts and wanted to find evidence that they existed. A couple of years after I started going to allegedly haunted buildings and trying to communicate with ghosts I realised I was wrong about ghosts existing and became a lot more sceptical and adapted my research methods into much more rational methods.

Now I’m known as a ‘sceptical paranormal researcher’ and investigate ghosts and monsters from a rational stance. I aim to find the reality behind claims, and to work out what normal things may have caused people to see or experience something a bit weird.

During my time as a believer I worked with numerous psychics, and as I learnt more and more about the reality of ghosts (that most sightings or experiences have their roots in psychology) I also learnt the methods that psychic tricksters use to deceive people into thinking they can talk to the dead.

Project Barnum is a resource that teaches people about the tricks used by fake psychics, to help people work out if the psychic they’re visiting is using psychological tricks. Project Barnum isn’t interested in whether this psychic or that psychic is real or not, we just want to teach people how to spot a trickster, or, as our motto says, to ‘see them coming’ before they can see you coming.

‘Project Barnum’ is named after P T Barnum who was an American showman who opened the famous American Museum in New York City in 1842 and immediately became well known for his exhibits of ‘freaks’.

He is often referred to as the “Prince of Humbugs” and saw nothing wrong in entertainers or vendors using hype (or “humbug,” as he termed it) in promotional material, as long as the public was getting value for money. However, he was contemptuous of those who made money through fraudulent deceptions, especially the spiritualist mediums popular in his day.

Why did you set up Project Barnum?

I used to co-host a sceptical podcast called ‘The Righteous Indignation Podcast’. It was hosted by sceptics and we would interview people who believed in the things we were sceptical of – from ghosts and alt med, to aliens and conspiracy theories. Shortly after the news broke in 2011 that psychic Sally Morgan had allegedly been caught cheating at one of her stage shows we were interviewing a psychic called Litz Butcher. I asked Litz what she thought about the Sally Morgan story and she told me that psychics know of other psychics who are fakes but do nothing about it because of the drama it would cause. That’s when I decided to create a resource detailing how people can spot psychic tricksters – I thought that if psychics are reluctant to sort out the problem, I’d do my bit to teach people about the techniques that fake psychics use so that if they go to see a psychic they can easily spot if those psychological tricks are being used.

What’s the most common scam when it comes to psychics and mediums?

The psychological tricks listed on the Project Barnum website are the most common tricks used, but Psychic Mail Scams are the most problematic. People are sent a generic letter (or email) telling them a psychic can help them if they just send a little bit of money back. The language used often seems as though it is addressing you personally even though it’s generic. There will be promises of a message that awaits you, but you need to send a bit of money back first for this message to be delivered. If the person sends the money back then the scammers get their claws in and will not let go. You send the initial cheque off in the post and you’ll get another letter with a bit of tat – maybe a ‘good luck pendant’. The second letter will request more money and make more promises of a message waiting for you. If you send more money you get a generic message back with more tat – maybe a crystal the so-called psychic tells you to place in the windowsill to help ‘psychic vibrations’ in your house and that, if you send them another cheque after this, they’ll be able to reveal more from your deceased loved ones, and this goes on and on.

People are sceptical that these scams are effective but they are, and they wipe out peoples savings. They destroy lives. Out of, say, 200 people the letter gets sent to only 1 might be in mourning for the loss of their spouse, but that’s all it takes. These scams are horrible and a really big problem and if you know someone who lives on their own and has lost their husband or wife it’s a good idea to see if they’re getting them because once the scammers have their claws in they will not let go. On the Project Barnum website we have a resource that details what to do if you get caught up in a scam like this.

Why do you think so many people fall victim to these kinds of scams?

People react to the death of their friends and family in wholly unique ways, and for some the idea that their loved one is still around them is appealing. What psychics offer is the chance to get a message from the person taken away from you. To be told they’re happy, safe, not in pain, and still around you can be comforting to some people.

I don’t think people who visit a psychic and don’t realise they’re being tricked are stupid, I think they are potentially vulnerable and not aware of the tricks being performed.

Psychics are convincing, and a part of you is so desperate for what they’re saying to apply to you that you make it fit. You make what they’re saying about you even though it’s really generic messages they’re passing on.

What makes a good psychic?

Someone who doesn’t use the tricks listed on the Project Barnum site, and who can pass a controlled testing of their abilities. The James Randi Education Foundation offers a $1million prize for anyone who can, and to this date nobody has passed a test with them.

Why did you choose to host your website with Heart Internet?

Heart Internet are reliable and offer support that no other host does. In the past I’ve had emails from them just to let me know a link on my website isn’t working so I can correct it. You don’t get that kind of personal treatment elsewhere.

How have you used social media to promote Project Barnum and how successful has it been?

Through strategic tweets I have managed to gain the support of numerous celebrities. The audience they have is far bigger than one I could build myself and when they tweet or post about Project Barnum it passes the message much further.

How did you go about asking people to vote for your site in our Website of the Month competition?

I used my personal twitter account and the Project Barnum twitter account. I also posted on Facebook, and asked people who are interested in education outreach to help spread the message.

What resources would you recommend to people looking to create their own website?

I’d recommend looking at sites that are similar to yours to see what they’re using and to see what does and doesn’t work for them. You don’t have to pay an arm and a leg to do what you want online these days. For example, all of my websites are created through WordPress and the Plugin options are brilliant.

How do you see Project Barnum developing further in the future?

I already have a new website in the making that takes the outreach work of Project Barnum and applies it to a much wider subject field. All shall be revealed later this year.