When it comes to investment fraud, you might picture an elderly widow being swindled out of her life savings.

However, Consumer Reports money advisor says according to a recent study, swindlers prey on another group you probably wouldn't expect.

The following are audio recording scripts of an actual scam artist at work:

"I said I would not call unless it was definitely a rare and undervalued situation…"We got them at an estate sale. We got it way below value, um, I didn't even take a broker's fee for that."

"There were 22,675 of these coins minted. Of those, only four have survived. Only four for God's sakes!"

What type of person is most likely to be a victim of investment scams? Consumer Reports' Andréa Rock says surprisingly, it's financially astute men.

According to a study by the National Association of Securities Dealers, what makes them vulnerable: these men are confident in making on-the-spot investment decisions.

“Before a con artist can convince someone to buy into a bogus deal, the victim has to be comfortable with investing in the first place,” explains a Consumer Reports expert. “Once that hurdle is out of the way, they're more likely to invest in whatever the crook is selling."

The likely investment victim's profile: they're married men. Financially literate college grads, and they're the type who attend free investment seminars.

"The victims are optimistic. They’re more willing to believe that this may be the one time when something that sounds too good to be true actually is true."

The Consumer Reports money advisor says the best way you can protect yourself against investment fraud is to check with your state's securities regulators. And, no matter what's being sold, always be suspicious of a salesperson who pushes too hard.

The Consumer Reports money advisor says you can learn more about how to protect yourself from investment fraud by going to the National Association of Securities Dealers website, at http://www.nasdfoundation.org/.