A pensioner said she felt like an “utter fool” after she was defrauded into sending £3,385.58 to scammers who she believed were her daughter.
The fraudsters contacted the elderly woman over WhatsApp, pretending to be her daughter to convince her to send over the funds for a new Apple MacBook laptop, reports MailOnline.
The scammers built up trust with the woman and then claimed they could not connect to their banking app to pay for the laptop and so needed her help with the payment.
The woman said she was “lulled me into a false sense of security” and when the criminals requested the money she was worried about her daughter and wanted to help as fast as possible.
Fortunately the pensioner avoided losing the money as the payment was stopped by an automated bank check.
Scammers often contact people over WhatsApp pretending to be a relative in need in the ‘Hi mum’ scam.
They purport to be the victim’s loved one, claiming they have had to borrow a phone as their old one has broken.
The fraudsters then say they desperately need money and put pressure on the person to act as they naturally want to help their child in need.
If the victim tries to call them to verify what is happening, the scammers may play static noise claiming the microphone is broken.
The ‘Hi mum’ scam is a form of Authorised Push Payment (APP) scam where fraudsters pretend to be a legitimate payee to convince a person to send over funds.
Cyber security expert Professor Steven Murdoch told MailOnline scammers will often make their message urgent saying something terrible will happen if the person does not send over the funds.
He said the ‘Hi mum’ scam is different as the scammers build up trust with the person before making the urgent request.
Although the automated bank check stopped the payment, these can vary for each bank so people need to be sure they are making payments to a legitimate person.
An individual can report a scam to Action Fraud, a national reporting agency, by calling 0300 123 2040 or through the group’s website.
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