A constant stream of real-life cases shows that fraudsters are using more advanced technology and rhetoric to scam people out of their money. Even old-fashioned scams have become more deceptive and harder to prevent when packaged with emerging technologies. In California, an elderly woman was unfortunately swindled of $25,000 savings due to a phone call from the bank’s “fraud prevention department.”
Experts from the non-profit consumer organization “Consumer Reports” (CR) in the United States point out that in this era of advanced internet, criminals can easily obtain highly sensitive personal information from others, including birthdates and social security numbers. Scammers use this information to gain victims’ trust and make them believe in their “identity.”
To further understand the operation of scams, “Consumer Reports” collected first-hand experiences from several victims to help raise public awareness.
Cathy, in her seventies, lives in Santa Clara County, California. She always thought she was quite cautious in managing her finances, with a strong sense of risk awareness, and always stayed alert to suspicious calls. She used to directly transfer all unknown calls to voicemail, never easily revealing personal information, especially bank account details.
However, last September, she received a call from “Wells Fargo Bank,” with the displayed phone number appearing authentic, and the man on the other end claimed to be from the bank’s anti-fraud department.
The man claimed suspicious transactions on Cathy’s bank account possibly linked to theft in Texas, despite Cathy not having visited the state recently. He stated that Cathy needed to confirm transaction details to prevent further losses.
“How do I confirm that you’re really from Wells Fargo?” Cathy cautiously asked. Surprisingly, the man immediately mentioned the last four digits of Cathy’s social security number. This made Cathy relax her guard, thinking only the bank would have such confidential information.
So, during the next 90-minute conversation, Cathy cooperated with the man in the so-called “anti-fraud” investigation and provided various bank details, including her online banking password, following the man’s instructions. He also asked Cathy to read out a series of so-called “transaction codes,” which were just tactics to delay and divert her attention.
While Cathy was busy assisting in “preventing fraud,” the scammers had already covertly accessed her account, changed the account phone number, and impersonated her to call Wells Fargo Bank, claiming authorization to transfer $25,000 to a “contractor.”
Although Wells Fargo Bank’s system sent an email alert promptly, Cathy was on the call with the scammers at that time, unable to check her inbox. The scammers even reminded Cathy not to log in to her online banking account during the “investigation.”
After the call ended, Cathy felt something was amiss and immediately called the bank’s official customer service to verify, but it was too late, and the transfer was completed and unrecoverable.
This scam left Cathy with just over two thousand dollars in her account. She tried to file a claim with the bank, but they replied that while Cathy was misled by the scammers, she did “voluntarily provide personal information,” and thus, they couldn’t be held responsible for any losses. The bank expressed “sympathy” for such cases.
The scam of impersonating bank personnel is not new. Law enforcement agencies worldwide tirelessly remind people: when receiving calls from unknown numbers, even if they appear to be official numbers from banks or government departments, they could be fraudulent. People should hang up and independently call the relevant institution through a reliable source.
Furthermore, do not provide any personal information over the phone, do not verify using the contact information given by the caller, do not yield to pressure from threats, immediately hang up and verify the caller’s claims, do not send money or provide personal bank account and credit card information to unknown or untrusted individuals.
An employee of a bank in Los Angeles County told reporters that legitimate bank employees would not prove their identity by actively stating a customer’s social security number and would not ask for online banking account usernames, passwords, or one-time verification codes. He added that even if there were potential risks of account misuse, consumers could simply hang up and proactively contact the bank to resolve any issues. ◇