Scam victim hopes to keep others from falling victim

MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake woman lost thousands of dollars to a scammer earlier this week, a story that Kyle Foreman, public information officer for the Grant County Sheriff’s Office, said was all too familiar.

“The scammer’s career is based on the fact they’re very, very good at convincing people they’re legitimate,” Foreman said. “The contacts are meant to be convincing.”

The victim declined to give her name, but said the scammers had what seemed like legitimate answers to the questions she asked. She was concerned that other people would become victims of the same scam. She also wanted people to know what it took to protect herself after she became aware of the scam.

The scammers sent her a message that seemed to come from the company that provided her operating software. The message appeared when she opened her computer and said unusual activity had been detected in her financial accounts and provided a phone number to call.

There were, she said, some details that make her uncomfortable, including extensive requests for information.

“I kept saying, ‘It seems you don’t need all this identification,’” she said.

She asked to talk to a supervisor and the scammers produced somebody posing as one. They gained extensive access to her computer, she said.

“They got access to all my bank accounts,” she said.

The scammers told her that the suspicious activity on her account had been traced to the local financial institution where her money was deposited. They persuaded her to move the money from the financial institution into what they said was a “secure” account. Foreman said that technique is common to that scam.

“That account goes right to the scammers,” Foreman said.

Captain Jeff Sursely of the Moses Lake Police Department said any contact that mentions money should be an immediate red flag.

“The minute they do anything with money, hang up on them. They’re done,” he said.

The scammers also attempted to leverage a credit card and gained access to a savings account, she said, but quick action by the victim and her family kept the scammers from stealing anything else.

Protecting herself required changing all her online information, she said. She had to close existing bank accounts and open new ones, as well as contacting all the businesses where she used automatic payments. All information for direct deposit accounts had to be changed. The computer had to be purged – and it all had to be done immediately.

“These are the many things you have to deal with,” she said. “It has been so overwhelming.”

In the wake of the scam, she added new layers of security to her online accounts and her computer, she said.

Scamming is an international business, Foreman said, and it’s run like a business.

“That’s how they make their living, and sometimes they make a very good living at it,” he said.

When people are unsure whether or not a contact is legitimate, Sursely said, they need to ask themselves if something like this has ever happened before. Banks, law enforcement agencies, courts or other businesses and agencies will not contact people and ask for money transfers, gift cards, cryptocurrency or any similar transaction, he said.

“Have you ever been called by your bank telling you to move money before?” Sursely said. “They just don’t do that.”

Foreman and Sursely said people can check on a suspicious contact, starting with hanging up. Never use any phone number, mailing address or email provided by the suspicious contact, Foreman said.

Businesses and agencies all have readily available contact information; if people are concerned about suspicious activity, they should contact the agency or business, Foreman said.

“Talk to a human being at that establishment,” Sursely said.

The victim said she hoped telling her story would keep other people from falling victim to similar scams.

“I don’t want this to happen to anybody else,” she said.