The area Better Business Bureau is warning that a woman lost $5,600 to scammers this month after she was told she could secure a lucrative Grant on Facebook. The woman was contacted by a scammer who offered the Grant in exchange for a down payment. The woman was told she could receive up to $25,000 if she put down a $1,500, so she did.
A scammer told the woman to purchase $4,100 in gift cards and to send the card information, which she did. Later, the scammer, using the name of one of the victim’s friends, contacted her and mentioned a separate Grant. The victim applied for the second Grant and provided the scammer with an additional $1,500 in gift cards. The transaction was interrupted before scammers were able to access the woman’s bank information. The BBB warns that scammers reach out through phone calls, email, notices in the mail, test messages and, increasingly over social media.
