A New Jersey woman received an email that appeared to come from PayPal warning that fraudulent purchases had been made on her account. Trying to stop the supposed fraud ended up costing her $48,800.
The Somerset resident called the phone number included in the email, according to TAPinto Franklin Township. A man who answered convinced her that her financial accounts had been compromised.
The instructions then moved beyond the phone. Police say the woman was told to meet supposed representatives in person and give them cash to fix the problem.
She followed the instructions and handed over $48,800 to two men. By the time the incident was reported to Franklin Township Police, the warning about fraudulent purchases had itself turned out to be the fraud.
The Email Made It Look Like Fraud Had Already Happened
The incident began July 21, when the woman received what appeared to be a PayPal email about unauthorized purchases. Franklin Township Police recorded the theft-by-deception report on July 23.
The message gave her a number to call about the supposed transactions. Instead of independently contacting PayPal, she called the number supplied in the warning and reached the person police say drew her further into the scheme.
The caller told her that her accounts had been compromised. That shifted the problem from a few questionable PayPal purchases to the possibility that much more of her money was at risk.
The Fake Support Call Turned Into an In-Person Cash Handoff
The scammers did not tell the woman merely to change a password or dispute a transaction. Police say she was instructed to meet supposed representatives in person and provide them with cash as part of supposedly correcting the account problem.
She ultimately met two men and gave them $48,800. The available police account does not identify the two men or say whether any of the money has been recovered.
The $48,800 Was the Largest Scam in That Police Report
The PayPal impersonation was one of several theft-by-deception cases Franklin Township Police recorded for July 23, but it produced by far the largest reported loss.
In a separate case, another Somerset resident met someone through a dating website who later claimed to have been arrested and needed money for bail. Police say that victim bought $10,000 in gift cards and provided the card information before realizing the story was a scam.
A third resident lost $1,200 after receiving what appeared to be an email from her son’s school advertising items for sale by a staff member. She paid a deposit on a vehicle before the school warned recipients that the message was fraudulent.
Never Use the Phone Number in an Unexpected Fraud Alert
PayPal advises customers who receive a suspicious email that appears to come from the company not to click its links, call listed phone numbers or download attachments. Instead, open PayPal independently through the official website or app and check the account directly. Suspicious emails can also be forwarded to phishing@paypal.com and then deleted.
The Federal Trade Commission has warned specifically about fake PayPal emails containing telephone numbers that lead to scammers rather than genuine customer support. If a message claims there is an urgent account problem, the FTC recommends contacting the company through a website or phone number known to be legitimate rather than using information supplied in the unexpected message.
Anyone who has already handed money to a suspected scammer should contact local law enforcement promptly and preserve the original email, phone numbers, call records, withdrawal receipts and any description of the people or vehicles involved. If account credentials, Social Security numbers or other identifying information were also disclosed, the FTC recommends reporting the incident through IdentityTheft.gov and following its recovery steps.