‘She was SURE it was me’ says son of scam victim, 83, who lost £47k in ‘Text Mum’ phone con just months before she died
A SCAM victim was SURE she knew when her ‘son’ was texting her – but lost £47,000 in the ‘Text Mum’ phone con months before she died.
Vile scumbags targetted Jo, 83, while she was undergoing cancer treatment and drained her life-savings in their scam.
The eye-watering amount of money was stolen using the phone fraud that has seen thousands lose their hard-earned cash.
Jo’s devastated son, Michael Collie, told BBC Radio Gloucestershire he had “no idea” what was happening behind closed doors.
The reason she didn’t phone me was obviously because [she thought] I was having difficulties and she didn’t want to raise it with me.
Michael Collie
Until, on one visit, she told him: “I’m glad I was able to help you”.
“At that moment, I knew something was wrong,” Michael recalled.
“Because I knew mum had not been lending, or giving me money.”
It turned out the elderly pensioner had received a text, from a sicko pretending to be her son.
It read: “Hi mum, just to let you know, I’ve changed my phone number, you can delete the old number, use this one”.
Michael told how Jo, innocently believing the text, continued chatting to the stranger as if it was her child.
The next cruel message said: “Oh, can you help me out. I’m just changing my bank account at the moment and I’ve got a bill to pay.”
Jo willingly transferred around £1,800 at first, before more requests came through and she accepted.
Michael added: “You might think, why did my mum not mention it to me? Why did she not phone up?
“And the reason she didn’t phone me was obviously because [she thought] I was having difficulties and she didn’t want to raise it with me.”
Plus, due to the nature of the scam, the heartbroken son highlighted the fact victims believe they are already in communication with their relative.
‘HUGE ERROR’
Jo had been on a list for vulnerable people with her bank, meaning more vigorous checks are carried out when said customers are transferring money.
Each time the 83-year-old wired her savings, she called the bank to have it approved.
Staff members never picked up on anything suspicious.
When the alarming problem was brought to their attention, they apologised for their “huge error”.
Jo was given a full refund of her lost money.
‘SHOCK AND HORROR’
The disgusting scammers had drained Jo of her life-savings – as well as funds left behind by her devoted late husband.
Michael recalled feeling “absolute shock and horror” when he discovered his mum had been taken advantage of.
He felt responsibility for not protecting Jo, despite the criminals being “100 per cent to blame”.
The fuming son urged other families to keep an eye on older relatives and those close to them, after seeing first-hand how things can go “horribly wrong”.
POPULAR SCAM
The ‘hi mum’ scam has seen billions taken from victims over the last three years.
The so-called ‘friend in need’ con trick is when a fraudster pretends to be a loved one who needs your help.
Scammers usually send a text from a completely new number, claiming to be a pal or relative who’s lost or damaged their main phone.
Because of this, they need you to send them some money urgently so they can either buy a new phone or do something pressing like pay a bill.
The scam has been a particular problem for parents, with fraudsters preying on emotions.
Worried WhatsApp users have been urged to ‘Stop. Think. Call’ if they receive an unusual request.
If not impersonating an elderly parent, scammers might try a tactic called ‘number spoofing’.
This is when a message appears to have arrived from a number save in your phone.
But in reality, hackers have used technology to disguise the display name instead of coming up as an unknown number.
Users also need to be beware of a dangerous scam text that hacks you in seconds.
One of the most clever methods of gaining access to someone’s WhatsApp account is through a verification code scam.
Usually what happens is that you’ll receive a text message from WhatsApp with a log-in code.
This is a two-factor authentication code that lets you log into your account – because it proves you’re in possession of the phone number.
Then you’ll get a WhatsApp message from a friend or family member.
This will say something along the lines of: “Hey! I accidentally sent you my WhatsApp log-in code. Could you send it back to me please?”
Never reply to this message.
How to protect yourself from fraud and cyber crime
If you believe you have been victim of a scam call 0300 123 2040.
- Do not give any personal information (name, address, bank details, email or phone number) to organisations or people before verifying their credentials.
- Make sure your computer has up-to-date anti-virus software and a firewall installed. Ensure your browser is set to the highest level of security and monitoring to prevent malware issues and computer crimes.
- Remember that banks and financial institutions will not send you an email asking you to click on a link and confirm your bank details. Do not trust such emails, even if they look genuine
- Destroy and preferably shred receipts with your card details on and post with your name and address on.
- Be extremely wary of post, phone calls or emails offering you business deals out of the blue. If an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is. Always question it.
Source; Action Fraud