Alice, 77, lives a short drive from Greenfield. She received a Facebook Messenger text from a work colleague named Ron, who told her she could qualify for a large cash award from the government. She would get a text the next morning to determine her eligibility.
The following text conversations were captured on Alice’s smartphone:
“I’m Bill Phillips, the agent in charge of Grant claiming for Workers Compensation Appeals. The Grants are awarded to individuals each and every day. Grant programs are not loans. You decide how much you need once you’re approved. As long as the amount is lawful and you meet the Foundation’s and Government Agency’s requirements, the money is yours to keep and never needs to be repaid. Only you as a taxpayer and U.S. citizen are entitled to apply for this Grant.”
Bill asked Alice to text him an armful of personal info: name and address, date of birth, gender and marital status, phone network provider, job and monthly/weekly income, and her driver’s license.
Bill: “Kindly answer it all now and I will inform you on your approval for the WCAB. We respect your privacy and will not sell your information to third parties. Kindly confirm that the information you provided about you is 100% correct to our Online Information And Record Department (OIRD) database.”
Bill asked for a screen shot of Alice’s Social Security card. He said his “UPS Delivery Department” and “the WCAB Administrative Department” needed her Social Security card to finish processing her data.
Bill: “We congratulate you for being among the WCAB beneficiary of the Year. Check your email. Your Grant details will be sent to you now to claim your WCAB Grant … Now we are about to send you the list of the amount you are qualified for so you can choose and pay for the clearance fee.”
Bill texted her a winning number, ticket number, and serial number, telling her to “Keep it safe as you will be asked to provide it when your fund is brought to your doorstep.” He gave Alice a list of payment levels from $1,500 to $50,000 she would make upfront, in return for grants ranging from $70,000 to $5 million. “YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE WISELY. GET BACK TO ME ON THE TEXT NUMBER WITH YOUR PREFERABLE AMOUNT.”
Alice chose to pay $1,500 to get $70,000. Bill instructed her to go to her nearby Walgreen’s and “get a $1,500 Vanilla gift card and your Grant check will be delivered to you by 1:00 pm.”
Alice: “Thank you. OMG this is wonderful.”
Bill: “Yes Madam… congratulations .… Good night, sweet dreams.”
The next day, Bill told Alice to buy three Google Play gift cards, three Vanilla Visa gift cards, and an Apple iTunes gift card. He texted her what he claimed was a screen shot of her U.S. Treasury check with most of the check obscured. Then he tried for more.
Bill: “Your grant money has been increased to $100,000. Congratulations Madam … you’re getting your check tomorrow morning by 10 am.”
Alice: “OMG that’s incredible.”
Bill: “I contacted the FedEx men coming to your house to deliver to your grant money. They were stopped by IRS officers. IRS said they need to get an IRS certificate before they can deliver your money. So once you make the remaining payment of $4,000, the UPS men will be released, and the money will be released. Remember, Ron paid $1,000 to us … so we are waiting for your $4,000 so the FedEx men can be on their way to your house now.The $4,000 is the last money you’re paying.”
But Alice refused to pay the $4,000. She just wanted her $70,000. “I won’t pay any more than what I did already.”
This phishing scam took three days to consummate. Alice lost a total of $3,200. The gift cards she texted to the California phone number were spent immediately.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, older adults filed 256,404 fraud reports in 2018, and lost $400 million to fraud. If internet fraud happens to you, go to ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and call your local police department. Contact the gift card companies immediately to try to void the payment.
Alice knew she should never email or text anyone her driver’s license, Social Security card, credit card or bank account info. But she did. The lure of sudden cash, and the referral from a trusted friend, led her into an internet trap that she’s embarrassed even to talk about with her family. The scammers have not been caught.
Al Norman of Greenfield worked in the elderly home care field in Massachusetts for 38 years. He can be reached at alnormaneldercare.@gmail.com.