Close Encounters of the Near Scammed Kind
Or That Recent Time I Was Almost Robbed On Social Media
I was recently sitting at my home office logged into my work computer, ready for incoming calls and processing open tickets. Soon my lunch came, and I logged off before grabbing my phone and heading to the kitchen to prepare some lunch. As I was heading to the kitchen, I noticed that small Facebook bubble at the bottom of my screen showing I had received a Facebook message.
Hey I need help.
I pulled up the name and realized this was an old pal from several years ago I’d been in contact with off and on. My heart jumped a beat as I wondered what could be going on.
Hey, what’s up?
Right away, I saw the sequence of dots alerting someone was writing back.
I need some money. Could you lend me some? I could pay you back tomorrow.
Well, I’m working right now but message me how much and where to send it and I can see what I can do.
Obviously my quick response shows how naive I can be. I have a profoundly strong emotions-based personality and am often drawn to helping others in need. My first thought was what if this old acquaintance was on the side of the road in some remote place with a popped-out tire and only a few dollars left to his name? What if he was tormented by past due bills and needed a little extra cash to get by til payday? I remembered how much I had enjoyed chatting with this guy in the past, even if was just making a comment on his post or him reacting with a laughter emoji to mine.
$150 is how much I need. I’ll pay you back tomorrow.
Okay, now this was starting to get a little weird. I had already mentioned that I was at work. $150 was quite a bit to just drop everything and send off to this person. I decided to lay out a little net for myself in case I was about to take a fall.
Where are you at now?
This was reasonable. If I was going to be sending money, I’d need to know where I was sending it.
Can you help or not?
This was becoming even more suspicious. I was starting to realize that this may not be my friend at all. There had been no acknowledgment when I had mentioned I was at work(from what I remembered my friend would have at least been partial to the timing). Furthermore, there was this avoidance of a simple question. So I decided to lay more safety net down.
I can’t remember for certain, how did I meet you?
That doesn’t answer my question.
Well, that was the final red flag. I had met this acquaintance almost a decade earlier at the grocery store where I worked. From what I vaguely recalled he was either a customer or coworker on a different shift. Does any old acquaintance who has the audacity just randomly ask for large sums of money give you the runaround.
I am sorry, I can’t help you right now I just don’t have enough.
F*** off.
You fool.
Well, then at the bottom of the Facebook messenger app there was that header that read “this person is no longer able to receive messages.” The scammer had blocked me. They had blocked ME after trying to con me out of a large amount of money.
I knew the real guy well enough to understand he would have never been so suspicious or confrontational. I was pretty perturbed by this(it’s a direct invasion of your personal privacy and space plus a violation to be personally attacked). However, I did take precautions, including changing my social media passwords. It turns out this type of scam is quite common. Scammers may ping you through a friend’s hacked social media account and antagonize you for all sorts of things like your password codes, money for an emergency or fake charity, or some scam contest requiring your personal data.
I am not an expert on scam preventions(you can find many helpful hints from local organizations or governmental agencies (like the FTC in the U.S.). One piece of advice I would offer(from experience, obviously) is that if you are chatting with anyone on social media or through text or call, follow your intuition and common sense if something feels off base. Is it not the case that every person we meet has a unique voice and use of language that we can engage with? For someone who is a real person, wouldn’t they have countless interesting facts and tidbits about themselves they could offer like their favorite food, all time best vacation spot, or personal pet peeves? Wouldn’t they want to try to share those intricate parts of themselves with you? If they seem to be following some script or program like those old telesales agents, you are best to try gauging them off script or hanging up on them altogether(the social media equivalent might be blocking or reporting them).
Besides the emotional, mental, and perhaps spiritual anguish, I came out from this scam attempt mostly okay. I feel bad for my old Facebook friend. Upon a search for his name, I found a new account with the public post, “account just got hacked, having to start over from scratch.” I just hope that he doesn’t have anyone calling and berating him to pay back a loan he never received a penny of. I will wait a little while to send him a new friend request so he can get his bearings.
These situations are real, and they happen everyday around the globe. They have always happened in some shape or form. My viewpoint is that this is the necessary other side of the coin to all of the infinite blessings unfolding each second of life, such as the ability to connect with people in so many different formats.
Have fun and best wishes to everyone in their online connections. But be careful and stay safe. Be kind, considerate, and offer full regard to everyone.
