Thank you for sharing this. The truth is, you are diligent and smart and human. These bad actors are practiced and have honed their skills. I’m so sorry this happened to you.
Dear Julie, I am sorry this happened to you. Watch out for fake delivery texts with UPS, USPS, and FedEx. The telltale sign for all is that your number is embedded in a group of 16 others. Never click on a hyperlink in a text. If it is Walgreens, confirming your flu vaccine appointment, resist the temptation to click the hyperlink. Drive with your dash cam. Ask Clark for his GoPro.
I am usually so cautious...that's why I wanted to write the post. We think we have built a fortress and then we discover that these slimy scammers have gotten so smart.
What a nightmare, Julie. It's a good PSA, and so I'm glad you shared about this. Fraud is a multi-billion dollar industry because it happens to the best of us.
Thanks...now I have to fight with the bank. I think we are all so overwhelmed with tech running our lives and then what feels like a quasi-human experience exploits our deep desire for connection.
Ahhhh, yes, next time I see you remind me to tell you about my brush with a scammer who called me back the next day and yelled at me for coming to my senses! So sorry that happened to you. It really sucks!
I'm sorry you went through this scam situation. It's getting harder and harder to tell what's real and what's not. I'm glad you were able to realize it right away. I feel saddened by all the people who have been duped.
I can totally empathize with that situation although for me it was falling for a phoney Facebook ad that was promoting for a real company. I went to their 'site' and ordered with my credit card because they didn't take PayPal. I never got the product and when I emailed to find out about it, the email was strange...the next thing I knew was the site was no longer there. The original charge was only $39 but late that night they bought a rug with my card info. My card was good about it and of course issued a new card. they said I am not responsible for this...but then I got a letter saying they were still investigating and if they couldn't find the person I 'might be responsible' for the charges. If they tell me that, I will call and tell them that after decades, I will no longer be a cardholder. There are 'fail safe' measures when you visit the website to do online payment, but no failsafe for fraudulent use of the card.
Also...Malware Bytes has a new Personal Information Remover (there's another called DeleteMe. Along with getting a VPN I got the PIR and was asked to input on a couple of the many companies that had my informatioin to sell. They have every address I have ever lived at, the name of my ex husband, and every phone number I've had, too. It's a weird and wicked world out there and we must do all we can to protect ourselves now...there's even a homeowner scam and people have had their homes sold without their knowledge...this can be corrected through the city govt. which will freeze this for every name you are associated with and require an in person visit for the signature. That doesn't cost anything.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I have been reading about all these scams, including house thefts. Once everything is resolved, I will ask my computer guru to suggest some failsafes...
Cybercrime is everywhere. On September 10, a scammer was able to access my Citi PrivateBank account and wire $85,000 to a Wells Fargo account in the name of Adedela Sodiq. Sodiq is an Arabic name for an honest man. I had never wired a sum anywhere near that sum before. I called the phone number on my bank card within 3 hours of the wire. It was too late. Citibank could do nothing they said. Anyone with a digital NYT account can read an article about my scam by clicking on the following link. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/12/business/tech-support-scam-bank-fraud.html?smid=url-share.
Thank you for sharing this. The truth is, you are diligent and smart and human. These bad actors are practiced and have honed their skills. I’m so sorry this happened to you.
Thanks for your kind words. Things are almost resolved. Still fighting with the bank over reimbursing.
Dear Julie, I am sorry this happened to you. Watch out for fake delivery texts with UPS, USPS, and FedEx. The telltale sign for all is that your number is embedded in a group of 16 others. Never click on a hyperlink in a text. If it is Walgreens, confirming your flu vaccine appointment, resist the temptation to click the hyperlink. Drive with your dash cam. Ask Clark for his GoPro.
I am usually so cautious...that's why I wanted to write the post. We think we have built a fortress and then we discover that these slimy scammers have gotten so smart.
What a nightmare, Julie. It's a good PSA, and so I'm glad you shared about this. Fraud is a multi-billion dollar industry because it happens to the best of us.
Thanks...now I have to fight with the bank. I think we are all so overwhelmed with tech running our lives and then what feels like a quasi-human experience exploits our deep desire for connection.
Ahhhh, yes, next time I see you remind me to tell you about my brush with a scammer who called me back the next day and yelled at me for coming to my senses! So sorry that happened to you. It really sucks!
Weirdly, I was at the bank the next day and the scammer called again. I have been very shaken by this experience.
I was too. It’s so unsettling and depressing. It took me awhile to let it go.
I'm sorry you went through this scam situation. It's getting harder and harder to tell what's real and what's not. I'm glad you were able to realize it right away. I feel saddened by all the people who have been duped.
I do think about so many people who are being victimized this way, often the most vulnerable people.
I can totally empathize with that situation although for me it was falling for a phoney Facebook ad that was promoting for a real company. I went to their 'site' and ordered with my credit card because they didn't take PayPal. I never got the product and when I emailed to find out about it, the email was strange...the next thing I knew was the site was no longer there. The original charge was only $39 but late that night they bought a rug with my card info. My card was good about it and of course issued a new card. they said I am not responsible for this...but then I got a letter saying they were still investigating and if they couldn't find the person I 'might be responsible' for the charges. If they tell me that, I will call and tell them that after decades, I will no longer be a cardholder. There are 'fail safe' measures when you visit the website to do online payment, but no failsafe for fraudulent use of the card.
Also...Malware Bytes has a new Personal Information Remover (there's another called DeleteMe. Along with getting a VPN I got the PIR and was asked to input on a couple of the many companies that had my informatioin to sell. They have every address I have ever lived at, the name of my ex husband, and every phone number I've had, too. It's a weird and wicked world out there and we must do all we can to protect ourselves now...there's even a homeowner scam and people have had their homes sold without their knowledge...this can be corrected through the city govt. which will freeze this for every name you are associated with and require an in person visit for the signature. That doesn't cost anything.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I have been reading about all these scams, including house thefts. Once everything is resolved, I will ask my computer guru to suggest some failsafes...
Thank you for sharing just how easy it is for us "savvy" folk to fall prey.
I am so sorry this happened. It’s a reminder to me to trust the voice in my head.
Cybercrime is everywhere. On September 10, a scammer was able to access my Citi PrivateBank account and wire $85,000 to a Wells Fargo account in the name of Adedela Sodiq. Sodiq is an Arabic name for an honest man. I had never wired a sum anywhere near that sum before. I called the phone number on my bank card within 3 hours of the wire. It was too late. Citibank could do nothing they said. Anyone with a digital NYT account can read an article about my scam by clicking on the following link. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/12/business/tech-support-scam-bank-fraud.html?smid=url-share.