Louise Carroll: Scammers know how to deceive
Many years ago at a writer’s conference, the keynote speaker said, “Nothing bad ever happens to a writer – you can always use it in your next story.”
Well, here’s the story. I canceled my Avast security account. At least I thought I did until I saw they had taken another payment. The amount in question was $105.99.
I then canceled and asked for a refund. Sounds simple, doesn’t it?
But it wasn’t because I was not at the Avast website I had entered Scamville@ura.sucker.net.
After spending who knows how many minutes that felt like hours on the phone I finally got to the supervisor who would process my refund.
What I felt was a simple request ended up being an afternoon of what happens when amateurs like me enter the dark domain of scammers.
The supervisor took over my computer and assured me that he would make this very simple and easy. I felt safe because I believed I was at Avast.
We went to my bank account and then we went to what I believed was Avast’s bank account.
He said “Type in $50.”
I replied “It is $105.99”
We discussed this and he assured me that when it was all finished I would have the full amount so I typed $50.00. He instructed me to look in my bank account and see my refund.
I looked. Wow! There was $5000 in my checking account.
It truly was a wow!
On the other end of the line, I could hear the supervisor and another voice that sounded like pandemonium just hit the office with a powerful force. They made me believe it. It was as good a performance as I had seen on the professional stage.
I thanked them for the generous gift, but they didn’t think it was funny. I assured them I did not want any money that didn’t belong to me.
The supervisor then blamed me for typing in $5,000 instead of $50 and I did not like that. I liked it even less when he said “due to your age and vision problems you typed it wrong.”
I’m not saying I couldn’t make a typo, but I know the difference between $50 and $5,000. I was very unhappy with his remarks about my age and vision because I can’t be blamed for aging and losing some sight.
I offered to write them a check for it minus my $105.99 but they said that was impossible. I told them to send me a link and I would send the money through my bank but that, too, was met with incredulity.
Little pinkish-colored flags began to flutter just a little. The supervisor said that I needed to go to my bank and withdraw $4,500 in cash. That did not seem right. I said it should be for $5000 minus the $105.99 refund that I had called for.
He replied, “We are giving you your refund plus the rest for your time and bother.”
Humm? When did a corporation ever just want to give me something free? The flags had turned bright red and were waving vigorously.
My friend Kathy Phillips came over and she insisted it was a scam, but I said "how could it be a scam when I could see the $5,000 in my checking account?"
I asked the supervisor what I was supposed to do with cash. He explained that I needed to go to Walmart and purchase $100 gift cards or go to the post office and buy $100 money orders.
A whole stadium full of people stood up frantically waving bright red flags.
I took Kathy’s advice and turned my computer off and then on again. Aha! The $5,000 was not in my account. Thankfully I didn’t get scammed. My money is safe in my bank, but I certainly came close to falling for it.
The scummy scammers are professionals; it is what they do all day long. The rest of us are just folks who want to do the right thing.
I’ve often wondered how people could fall for scams and now I know. I hope my story will be a warning to others that the scammers are out there every minute of every day.
Louise Carroll is a correspondent and columnist for The Ledger.
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Carroll: Scammers know how to deceive
