By Pat Culverhouse
Some customers of a local bank found themselves victims of a fraudulent scheme that has Minden police investigators trying to follow elusive electronic trails that often lead out of the country.
“A mass text message was sent to many patrons of the bank asking them to verify some alleged purchases on their bank cards,” Chief of Police Jared McIver said. “The text asked them to click on a link to verify whether or not there was such a purchase, and these scammers obtained information that allowed them to access their accounts.”
McIver said most of those who received the text message apparently suspected something and did not respond. Unfortunately, some who did click on the link saw their accounts raided.
“Around $30,000 reportedly was taken from accounts,” he said. “Sadly, some of these people who lost money were elderly. This is something that happens at this time of the year, and we’re asking people to be very careful about responding to a questionable text or email.”
Lt. Jason Smith, head of the MPD Criminal Investigation Division, said individuals can take precautions when they receive such messages.
“People should check their bank apps or call the bank to see if they did indeed send the message,” he said. “Banks do not correspond with their customers in this way. And, people should never click on a link in such texts or emails. That could open the door to your privileged information.”
Smith said customers who lost money in this most recent scheme have, fortunately, had their funds restored by the bank.
“But the money is still gone, and it’s almost a certainty that it’s gone overseas,” he said. “We’ve interviewed some people who said they received a phone call from someone saying they were a fraud investigator for the bank, and that caller had a very heavy foreign accent.”
McIver and Smith said there’s another scam involving text messages that is showing up during the holidays with alarming frequency.
“We’re seeing many texts alleging to be from the U.S. Postal Service claiming they have a package that cannot be delivered, and it’s asking for verification of your address so delivery can be made,” McIver said. “It gives a link to click and verify the address, but that’s a lead-in to steal your information.”
“Those links may take you to a web site that looks official, right down to the postal service logo, but it is fake,” Smith said. “Do not click on the link. It gives the scammer access to everything they need to steal your identity.”
McIver said individuals must be aware of potential scams when they receive messages that appear to come from legitimate businesses or branches of government.
“As sad as it sounds, the holiday season is the best time of year for these scammers,” he said. “We ask everyone to be skeptical of anything requesting any type of personal information, even if it appears to be legitimate. We also urge everyone to check on elderly family members or neighbors. They are particularly vulnerable to scam artists.”