Abstract
From a historical perspective, much has been written about the emergence and development of the phenomena of direct selling, both in the US and elsewhere around the world. This paper contributes to this broad body of literature by focussing on a previously understudied aspect of direct-selling: namely, the manner in which such personal sales techniques were exploited by fraudsters and other criminal enterprises as a means to target and deceive victims within the (imagined) security of their own homes. In this respect, it not only broadens and contributes to our historical understanding of direct-selling, it also highlights the ways in which the intimacy generated through these more personalised solicitations could be exploited for illegal means.