Western-Union
A 'grandparent scam' calls for people to wire money allegedly to rescue their grandchildren in other countries.
It's easy to see why the scam works: It targets grandparents. Or more precisely, it takes advantage of their near unshakable impulse to help a young relative in distress. And they fact grandparents often have fast access to money, quite possibly in the form of their life savings.
The latest victim is a 78-year-old woman in Somerset County, Pa. On Friday morning, her voice broke at times while describing what the scammers said, and how she and her husband felt upon realizing they had been taken.
The initial call came Wednesday, when someone sounding exactly like their grandson called and said he had been injured in a car accident in the Dominican Republic and needed money for medical care. The Somerset County grandmother, who didn't want her name published, wired the requested $800.
Another call came Thursday. This time a different young man spoke, explaining that, during the car accident, they had hit a pregnant woman, now in the hospital. They had been drinking. Another $800 was needed. The grandmother asked to talk to her grandson. The caller said he couldn't come to the phone because he was in front of the judge.
Her husband raised the possibility of a scam. But what if it wasn't? "If we didn't sent the money, what would they do to him," she said. They headed for Western Union. Seeing them again wanting to wire a large sum overseas, the clerk said it's probably a scam. But the Somerset grandmother couldn't stop thinking of her grandson on the phone, and felt they couldn't risk not sending the money. The clerk refused.
So they went to a Wal-Mart. That clerk also suspected a scam and refused to wire the money. The clerk explained she always suspects a scam when someone older than about 60 wants to wire a large sum overseas.
Following the clerk's advice, they went to state police. The caller pretending to be a friend of her grandson had given a call back number. The plan was for the grandmother to call it and say a family friend wanted to talk to him, and then hand the phone to a state trooper. But upon hearing his voice the caller hung up.
At that point the grandmother contacted her daughter, who texted the grandson. He was at work at his new job in Pittsburgh. It's unlikely the Somerset grandparents will ever get back the $800.
On Friday, the grandmother marveled the scammers' ability to provide convincing details. The fake grandson, a recent college graduate, told of traveling to the Dominican Republic with a group of friends for a wedding. That's where the drinking that led to the accident took place. The scammers now how to push the right buttons. It was so convincing that, upon learning alcohol was involved, the grandfather worried the incident would affect his grandson's new job. The fake grandson said they shouldn't tell his mother. He said his grandparents were the only people he could turn to. It matched their relationship with their real grandson. "It just sounded like my grandson talking ... they have that story down pat," she said.
Many people have fallen for that story, or a variation of it.
Like the flu, the so-called 'grandparent scam' seems to constantly evolve, taking in new victims despite warnings from state attorney generals and organizations including AARP. The scammers know that when a grandparent received a call from a young relative pleading for help, their instinct is to do so. AARP in its warnings has told of a Washington couple who lost nearly $90,000 over several days to a caller they believed was their grandson.
A story involving a terrible accident is a common one. Sometimes a "doctor" gets on the line. Sometimes a fake grandchild will speak, explaining he or she can only talk briefly. Sometimes the grandchild is in trouble with the law, and someone pretending to be a police officer will get on the line. Sometimes the relative's car has broken down and the relative needs money to get it fixed. Sometimes they are stuck at a foreign airport and need money to pay customs to return home. It's common for the young relative to beg the grandparent not to tell their parents about the situation. In virtually all cases, the situation is urgent and the money must be wired immediately.
But a request for money that must be wired immediately is a scam in virtually every instance, according to law enforcement officials.
It's surprisingly easy for the scammers to get the needed information. Sources include obituaries, social networks, hacked email accounts and sources such as marketing databases.
The Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office several years ago put out a warning saying an urgent request to wire money overseas is always a scam. And once the money is wired, it will never be recovered, say law enforcement officials.
AARP has offered this advice:
- First, resist the pressure to act quickly. That piece of advice comes from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The fake grandchild says it's an emergency in order to bypass your natural hesitation before parting with your money. Slow things down to short-circuit the scam.
- Second, ask questions: what's your mom's name? What's your favorite pet's name? Where were you born? Your fake grandchild will flunk the test.
- Third, ask for a phone number: if it's really a relative, they won't be shy about providing contact information. If it's a "doctor" or "police officer," they should be able to provide an office number. Yes, any phone number provided by a scammer will be fraudulent. However, you will be comforted that if it's really your grandchild, the number will be legitimate and you can call him back after doing your own careful research.
- Finally, and most important, hang up and call your grandchild's home number or mobile phone number, and call his parents. You will discover he's safe and sound. In the incredibly rare instance that the call actually came from a relative, you may call him or her back and make payment arrangements.
What else you can do?
- As the FBI points out, "Never wire money based on a request made over the phone or in an email... especially overseas. Wiring money is like giving cash - once you send it, you can't get it back."
- Remind your family members not to announce on websites such as Twitter and Facebook that they're leaving on vacation. The Internet is global, exposing them and their families to literally billions of Web surfers - some of whom know how to illegally profit from the information.
- Also, make sure to keep your family members' updated contact information easily accessible so that you may easily find out for yourself the whereabouts of your loved ones.
If you fell for it:
- If you have wired money and it hasn't been picked up yet, call the wire transfer service to cancel the transaction. Once the money has been picked up, there is no way to get it back. You can reach the complaint department of MoneyGram at 1-800-MONEYGRAM (1-800-666-3947) or Western Union at 1-800-448-1492. Then, file a complaint with your local police department and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Visit online or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261.
- Pennsylvania residents should call the state attorney general's office at Consumer Protection- 800-441-2555.
