People are scum. I just spent 5 hours helping my 87 yo mom contact banks and credit card companies to recoup money. She called a number she found on google for customer service to cancel Youtube TV and instead called some scammer that convinced her to download an info sharing app onto her iphone. Yup, he emptied her bank accounts and bought numerous online gift cards. I deleted the app but who knows what else they retrieved.
Pardon me while I throw myself under the coming snow plow.
@ChippySuave so sorry for yall! It really is hard to trust anyone nowadays
That happened to me years ago. Scammer had vital information that convinced me he was legitimate. I spent hours trying to resolve a problem. Started getting suspicious & said, I would turn the matter over to my son. He wanted no part of that.
Now I know to end the conversation immediately & call the company myself to investigate the problem.
I’m sorry this happened. Please don’t throw yourself under the plow.
@ChippySuave damn that’s rough. That happened to my step father once but on a smaller scale with some scammer who called pretending to be Microsoft. Lost about 1500 and the HD of his computer.
@ChippySuave There are a lot of scummy people out there. I hate that this happened. 😞
@ChippySuave Sick bastards.
There is a special place in hell awaiting people like that. So sorry it happened.
OMG! I am so very sorry that you and your mom are going through this! I can't even begin to imagine how horrifying this is to have happen to your mom!😥 Praying that you are able to recover the money! 🙏
@ChippySuave I hope they didn’t access her SIM card. I’m so sorry this happened.
What was the exact name of the app they had her download and what was the phone number she called?
Lemme at 'em.
@th3j35t3r Oh they have no idea of the murder hornets' nest they just kicked.
The guy's name (as recognized by Siri) was David at 804-491-8507. The app is called Iperius Remote Desktop.
Okay. TY. I'll circle back. 'David' lol.
How old did he sound? To your Mom?
@th3j35t3r She said maybe 35-40 with an accent that was kind of hard to understand, Maybe middle eastern. She said not Spanish.
Last question for now - what was the exact website she found that 804 number on?
I can't find that. She did a google search for You Tube tv customer service number.
I have not been able to recreate and find it, even after checking her history.
@ChippySuave Anything in her browser history?
@th3j35t3r She looked at this page, and based on the comments by Lorenzo Ebe, maybe this is where she got the number? It's the only place I can find a 1-80..... for you tube.
https://youtube-tv.pissedconsumer.com/questions-answers.html
@ChippySuave @th3j35t3r
Here's a post about a scam from a similar phone number. The scammer probably leased a block of sequential numbers
https://scammer.info/t/youtube-scammer-804-491-8455/112453
🍿 O.O
💙 @th3j35t3r
I’m so sorry that happened to your mom, I hope it’s all resolved at the banks asap! @ChippySuave
@ChippySuave @th3j35t3r
That phone number is in a range assigned to a telecom called Bandwidth. Here is their reporting form:
https://www.bandwidth.com/legal/report-a-phone-number/
It's a https://textnow.com number currently. It used to belong to a person called Chad N**** outta Hanson, KY - but it's long since been recycled and used by scammers. Tick tock. 👍
@th3j35t3r @ChippySuave
I can't find it searching for the phone number, which might indicate Google already has identified the page as a scam and removed it. I tried searching for an image of the phone number but the image search functions aren't good at telling text apart.
@ChippySuave @th3j35t3r
It seems that Bandwidth has a history of selling services to scammers. They got a cease and desist letter from the FTC last November.
You can look up who controls with numbers at https://www.telcodata.us/search-area-code-exchange-detail
https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/warning-letters/cease-desist-letter-bandwidth-inc
It's like Christmas morning for ya 😁
Take you time... got popcorn for everyone.
@ChippySuave Oh my god, Chippy. I am so sorry to hear this. Oh no. I wish I could offer some help.
@ChippySuave That sucks having to dispute all of those transactions. The good news is that the banks have to give you provisional credit while they perform their investigation. It's a hassle but she should get her money back.
@ChippySuave Jesus, that's terrible! So sorry that happened to her!
Ugh! How horrible for both of you! I hope they're able to recover it.
Maybe it would help if you gave her a list of numbers for the banks, etc, with the understanding she'd call those numbers, not any others someone gives her.
@BrazenlyLiberal She's calling the numbers on the back of each card. Luckily the companies are willing to listen and have set in motion charge reversals and fraud reports.
I felt bad for her; she was shaking. She knows her mental acuity is declining, but I think this shocked her how easily they confused her and fooled her.
@ChippySuave @BrazenlyLiberal Tell her it's not all her fault. They can be very convincing.
Yes, evildoing is the fault of evildoers, not their victims.
Poor woman! She must feel violated and vulnerable.
This happens to people of all ages. The elderly are targeted, but much younger people fall for it, too.
@ChippySuave
I’m so sorry. I know J’s working on making sure at least this scammer is stopped. And it’s good to hear the banks and card companies are working with your Mom. ❤️
I have the same concern with my 95 yr old Dad. It’s hard for him to understand this new computer/cell phone age and the ease of scammers. Our saving grace is he doesn’t hear well on the phone, so I do any business calls. He just talks to friends 🤗🥰🤗 Sending you both love and you Mom a big hug.
@ChippySuave @BrazenlyLiberal
Social engineering works on people who are fully cognizant. That's how they hack a lot of large companies, convincing staff to reset passwords for top executives.
@ChippySuave These people are monsters. I hope for a good resolution, and someone nails those assholes to the wall. 🤬
@ChippySuave oh, Chippy, I am so sorry. I had my bank acct hacked a while back.. folks here in CoSo were instrumental in helping me. I hope you get the help you need. I'm so sorry ..
😱! That is awful!
@ChippySuave
😳 Scammer People are such heels 😕
@ChippySuave
I am horrified to hear this. I hope that the banks are able to restore her funds. I also hope that you find yourself surrounded by good people.
@ChippySuave
My mom made it to age 90 before anyone scammed her. They spoofed the Apple support number, and her iPhone recognized th caller ID and displayed the Apple logo and corporate address in addition to just the phone number. It looked very legit.
At least the folks in the Apple Store spent several hours of their time helping her lock down all her accounts and notifying the credit bureaus.
@ChippySuave goddamn
Your poor mom...