Scammers are becoming increasingly sophisticated, using your bank’s name in emails or text messages to grab your attention, and even spoofing phone numbers to appear as if they are calling from your bank.
One such call ended up costing a woman nearly her entire life savings.
Christy Taylor answered the phone when she saw her bank’s number on the caller ID.
“Of course, when it showed up, I answered,” she said.
The caller claimed there was a fraudulent withdrawal from her account and urged her to act immediately to protect her remaining funds.
“He told me I needed to withdraw my money and transfer it to another bank,” Taylor explained.
It seemed like a logical step, so she followed his instructions and moved nearly $10,000 onto a prepaid debit card. She then provided the caller with the new card number.
By the time she tried to transfer her money to another bank, Taylor discovered all her funds were gone.
“$9,600,” she said. “I couldn’t believe it—I just got scammed out of a lot of money.”
Many Victims Fall for These Calls
Zulfikar Ramzan, chief of digital safety and threat intelligence at Aura, a digital security firm, says it’s easy to fall for these scams.
“It used to be that a phone call seemed more legitimate than an email, but that’s no longer the case,” he said. “Both can easily be scams.”
Ramzan explained that these callers are often very persuasive, using urgent calls to action to scare victims.
“They’ll say things like, ‘If you don’t follow these steps, something bad will happen,’” Ramzan noted.
Instead of engaging with these calls, Ramzan advises contacting your bank directly using the number on the back of your debit card, not the number that called or texted you.
When we reached out to Christy Taylor’s bank to see if her transfer could be reversed, they responded after a two-week investigation, stating they couldn’t help since Taylor had withdrawn the money herself.
Taylor has no paperwork to prove the scam, but she knows her money is gone.
“They took our life savings,” she said.
To avoid falling victim, don’t trust unexpected calls or texts from your bank. Always verify alerts by contacting your bank directly or visiting a branch.
This simple step can protect you from losing your money.