Scammer made a 'terrible mistake', then asks for $6000

A MAN saying he was from Telstra called a Northern Rivers woman, saying he wanted to reimburse her money.

Police are warning people to be aware of the latest scam. Picture: Contributed

A PHONE scammer has gained access to a woman's web cam on her computer in an attempt to steal $6000 from her.

Senior Constable David Henderson of Richmond Police District said the new and disturbing type of fraud has emerged in the Northern Rivers, one we all need to be aware of.

He said on October 12 the victim in this matter received a phone call from 'Kevin White' who said he was from 'Telstra'.

He said the victim was in credit on her account by $60 and he wanted to reimburse her. The victim was instructed to open her online banking and provide him with the last three digits of her account.

The victim saw that Kevin had transferred $6000 into her account rather than $60.

Kevin said that he had made a terrible mistake and he would lose his job over his transfer error.

He asked the victim to send him $6000 from various post offices and to post the money to him in Thailand.

The victim was also instructed to send him 20 itunes cards.

He said: "Do not tell anyone what they are for and if anyone ask just tell them you are buying them for a friend".

She made inquiries at stores about buying cards and was advised by staff that it was a scam.

Police worked out that the $6000 transferred was actually out of her own account, and it seems that Kevin was also utilising her webcam to watch her.

It would appear that the victim has inadvertently downloaded Malware which gave Kevin control over her computer.

Thankfully the victim in this matter did not lose any money, but local police are investigating similar scam where a local person lost several thousand dollars.

Points to remember:

• If you receive a call from someone asking for your bank account details, be very wary.
• No business will ever ask you to buy itunes cards or send them money via a dodgy money transfer company, especially ones that do not have to nominate the person they are sending it to. Fraudsters use these ways of transferring money as it is virtually untraceable.
• Install an anti-virus programme on your computer that will also check for malware. If you do not use your webcam frequently you may want to put some heavy black tape over the lens.
• Do not click on links in emails unless you know for sure what they are. This is probably how the malware made it's way onto the victim's computer.
• If you work in retail and see someone buying thousands of dollars worth of itunes cards, you may want to speak to them about it; they are probably a scam victim.
• If you have elderly or vulnerable family, friends or neighbours please have a talk to them about phone scammers. The elderly and vulnerable are generally the target of these phone scams.
• If you think someone is plying a scam on you, stop all communication with them immediately. Scammers will pressure you into acting quickly and not to talk to anyone about their scams. Talk to family, friends or police if you think someone if running a scam on you. Feel free to message me on Facebook and ask for advice.

Originally published as Scammer made a 'terrible mistake', then asks for $6000