CLEVELAND — Any kind of scam that takes people’s money is bad enough, but when criminals target our most vulnerable, that’s a whole new level of terrible.
News 5 Investigators sat down with the victim of a tech support scam who wanted to come forward to warn you to watch out.
81-year-old Joyce Meeks sat in her modest apartment on Cleveland’s west side amongst the rooster collection, the refrigerator signs, and the hum of an oxygen machine.
SHE CLICKED ON A FAKE STORY
Last year, as she was on her computer scrolling through the headlines of stories, she found an interesting one. “A dog had been adopted out for 11 times,” described Meeks.
After clicking on the story, she said her computer screen went blurry. Then, multiple pop-ups told her to contact tech support for a well-known company.
“What would you think if you saw Microsoft coming across (your screen) and with that name?” she said.
She said she called a number on the screen and the scammers eventually took over her computer, told her to give out her info. “Showed them my driver’s license, and the credit card,” she told us.
After taking $200 from her, Meeks finally realized it was all a scam. “That $200 could be my lifeline. Could be my food, my prescriptions,” said Meeks. “I felt I had been had. I thought I knew better.”
THE SCAMMERS WEREN'T DONE
But the scammers weren’t done with her, leaving phone numerous messages saying they would keep taking thousands more from her. “For the next three years for the amount of $6,800,” said a rep in a recent voicemail to Meeks.
“When you hear that, what goes through your mind? we asked.
“It scared me. I don’t have that kind of money. I’m on a fixed income,” she replied.
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSIONS GIVE TIPS
“The cons are pros. They know exactly what they’re doing,” said Jon Steiger from the Cleveland offices of the Federal Trade Commission. “No legitimate company is going to reach out to a consumer and ask for personal information or ask for financial information,” Steiger told us.
He also said the FTC just issued a new rule imposing civil penalties on scammers posing as companies or government agencies.
He said if you get pop-ups like Meeks or calls or texts, just delete, hang up, don’t click on anything and restart your device because lots of people are getting scammed by these tricks. “We’re going into federal court in order to shut these operations down,” said Steiger. “And we recently had a settlement for $26 million against a tech support scam.
Meeks said when she took her computer into a local store to have it looked at, the employee told her some depressing news. “He said you’re not alone and he said the guy that just left (the store) lost $10,000,” said Meeks.
She said you have to be careful because crooks don’t care even if you’re an 81-year-old, on a fixed income and on oxygen. “They know how to scare you,” she told us. “They’re ruthless!”
The FTC said if you see these kinds of scams, they want to hear from you. Here’s a link to report fraud to the FTC.
