From phony debt collectors to fake tech support calls, financial scams abound these days. Some of them are obvious, but others are pretty sophisticated. If you’ve ever fallen for a financial scam, tell us about it.
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Not long ago, I got an email that my online bank account was compromised. For a minute, I was fooled. It looked legit, just like the emails my bank sends me periodically, and the address didn’t look immediately suspect. I assume everything is a scam, and a quick search confirmed it, but others undoubtedly fall for this. If you ever have, we want to know about it.
Whether it was a phishing scam, a phone call — even a letter you might’ve gotten in the mail, tell us your story. What happened, and what did you do about it?
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8 responses to “Have You Ever Fallen For A Financial Scam?”
I got ripped off by a private taxi at Sydney airport once but that’s about it. Bit young and should have stood up for myself better. Oh well, live and learn.
Everyday with every bill.
One of my mates has been sucked in by Vemma. It’s painful to watch.
Accupuncturist in London when I was living there around 2003. Having been to a good one in Holland for several years to relieve joint pains I thought, hey, doesn’t really matter which one I go to right? WRONG! I chose one that looked quite professional from the outside. My previous one cost me about 30 euros a session (about $60) and they would usually be about 5 sessions in the space of 4 weeks to relieve pain for up to 3 months.
I told this to the accupuncturist and she welcomed me with a smile and said sure well help you.
Had the same treatment for my leg, even though they decided to also do some sort of massage on it that it didn’t really need. Then, when I walked to the counter to pay, I got greeted by probably all 5 staff members who told me that I had to also take some sort of medicine and sign a plan to come back every 3 days for 10 sessions. They then happily told me that my session today was $200. And the next ones should only be $180. The medicine prescribed costed another $80 which I had to finish all and buy a new batch when I returned.
They then proceeded to gang up at the exit, so I could not leave until I had payed the $280.
It was all to make my knee ‘feel better’.
I fairly sure I have not been scammed……..I do sometimes wonder if there is a guy sitting at Yahoo head office wondering why I don’t email him back so he can send me a check for $20,000,000. Maybe he UN does have money they need to reimburse me for scams I never fell for??
This dodgy sounding bunch that call themselves the ATO keep asking me for money. I wish they’d leave me alone.
A few years ago, I decided to make a more serious go of acting as a hobby. I found an ad in the paper for an agency looking for people to sign up, but they needed me to pay $100 for some professional headshots. I got copies of the photos, and they were rather good, but I never heard from the agency again.
About 10 years ago an uncle overseas convinced my mum about some investment that was recommended by his friends. Mum then turned to me and asked and asked and eventually I gave her $AUD2500 and she also put in 2500 to send my uncle. Anyway it was supposed to be a Swiss bank with amazing investment returns or something. I was 17 and I didn’t read anything directly. Until they gave each of us an account number and login for a website called Swisscash from what I remember. (Don’t laugh if you have heard of this one, wasn’t my fault)
Anyway it seemed like every couple of weeks the cash would increase. Then when it abrutply disappeared, I learned what a Ponzi scheme was.
We lost $5k and my uncle and his friends overseas lost more too. He thought it was a godsend at first which is why he managed to convince mum.
I forgive him for not knowing any better though, he isn’t tech or finance savvy.
Knowing we got scammed is a huge kick in the guts. I wish it upon no one.
I gave away my password to my neopets account in 2001 in a phishing scam. Luckily there was no real money involved (I was only 12), but it taught me a tough lesson because I had thousands of neopets credits in there.