Virginia woman's bank account emptied by man posing dating site employee
CHANTILLY, Va. (7News) — We all want to find that special person to spend our lives together, but one Virginia woman is regretting that she picked to do it online. She signed up for the popular dating site, Match.com, and got taken for a lot of money.
Match.com says it's the number one destination for online dating, backed by 25 years of experience. Lisa Becker took a shot to find love and it landed her in the middle of a scam.
“The numbers he was texting me from says Match.com. I tried calling them the next day and they answered the phone Match.com. The next thing I know is that evening I have almost $800 charges to my credit card, taken out of my checking account,” said Lisa Becker.
When she signed up, she had issues accessing her account. She sent Match.com an online help ticket. Days later she got a call from what she thought was Match.com.
“He was so professional throughout the whole call. There was nothing suspect,” said Lisa Becker.
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In just over an hour, multiple unauthorized cash withdrawals took place on her checking account and a credit card.
Turns out the Match.com employee on the phone was an impostor. He talked and texted her instructions to activate her account by downloading the “AnyDesk Remote Desktop” app to her iPhone.
Read more about AnyDesk's policy on fighting fraud online.
That allowed the scammer access to Lisa's I-Tunes account to make what he said were "dummy transfers," which turned out to be real credit card charges.
The $398 from her checking account was transferred to Apple Cash and Cash App. Her credit card was hit for $400, which was linked to her I-Tunes account.
Eventually, Lisa heard a big red flag pop up.
“He wanted me to go to a store and buy a pre-paid card. He didn't specifically say what kind. A pre-paid card so he could put the money back on,” added Becker.
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"So that was a big red flag?" asked 7News I-Team Investigative Reporter Scott Taylor.
"Big red flag and throughout the whole call he was texting me access codes from another number,” said Becker.
After realizing she was scammed, Lisa locked down her accounts and reached out to Match.com and the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Match.com told the BBB its customer care doesn't offer phone support or ask members to install remote access software and won't ask members to purchase gift cards.
Becker received this response through the BBB from Match.com.
"Please note that Match Customer Care does not offer phone support, and any parties claiming to do so are unaffiliated with Match. Match does not ask members to install remote access software and will not request access to private information such as passwords for iTunes accounts, nor will Match request that members purchase gift cards in order to receive support. Customer Care may be contacted via e-mail or through Live Chat M-F 8 a.m. through 5 p.m. CST. https://help.match.com/hc/en-us/articles/6140024199195-Does-Customer-Support-have-a-phone-number-
As these fraudsters are not affiliated with Match, we are unable to offer support with these charges. However, we recommend contacting the payment method provider immediately to report these charges as fraudulent, as well as reporting this matter to the local authorities.
With regards to the access to this Match account, be advised that we are unable to locate any account registered with the phone number and e-mail address provided. We ask that this concern be updated with the e-mail address and verified phone number used to create this account so that we may offer further assistance. This may also relate to the account access issues, as Match will require members to enter the correct combination of e-mail address and password when attempting to access the service."
Sincerely,
Match Group
"It's kind of sad too, -- to defraud somebody but to use their kind of longing for companionship and pulling their heartstrings a little bit. It's just sad all the way around,” said Becker.
Match.com told Becker it believes she was a victim of a phishing scam and offered tips to protect her online account.
- Immediately change the password to both your Match account and your personal email account.
- Clear your browser of any cookies.
- Perform a virus scan.
- Don't reply to any suspected email with your personal or account information.
Here is the email Match.com sent to Becker.
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for letting us know about the suspicious call from Match. I'm really glad that you've contacted us about that issue!
It appears that the call that you received may have been a phishing scam from someone trying to obtain your personal account data. Please do not reply with any of your personal or account information.
If you believe your Match account may have been compromised in any way, please take the following steps, and let us know so that we can take further action.
1. Immediately change the password on both your Match account and your personal email account. Update security questions as well, if needed.
2. Clear your browser cookies. Click on the following link for instructions: https://www.match.com/help/faq/9/179
3. If you use an anti-virus software, perform a virus scan, just to be safe.
4. Please do not reply to the email with any of your personal or account information. We also advise against clicking any links or opening attachments from unknown senders.
For reference, emails from Match may come from the following email domains: @match.com, @talkmatch.com, @connect.match.com, and @support.match.com. Match will never request for you to send your account password or financial information via email. And we don't provide the phone service anymore.
If you'd like to learn more about phishing email scams, including examples, please click here: http://www.match.com/help/faq/1/16/
Thank you again for this information. I'll make sure what you've sent to me is reviewed by our Fraud team. If there is anything else I can help you with, please let me know.
Thanks,
Match Care Team
Becker also received this email from the Trust & Safety Department with Match.com.
Dear Lisa,
My name is Cynthia, and I am on the Trust and Safety team for Match in the Corporate Office. I just wanted to personally follow up with you regarding your report of a false phone number pretending to be Match Customer Care. Please be assured, we take these reports very seriously, and our Legal team is pursuing this matter.
I understand the numbers which contacted you were 732-210-6940 and 818-666-8283. I can verify these are not valid phone numbers for Match.com or any Match partner site. Please do not call or answer these phone numbers again for assistance with your Match account.
Please know, Match.com does not charge Members for our Customer Service or Technical assistance, and we will never ask you to purchase a 3rd party gift card to pay for assistance with your account or to issue a refund. We will also never ask you for your Match password, email password, or request your social security or driver’s license number. In addition, we will never ask you to download 3rd party software to assist you.
If you need to contact Match for assistance, you can reach us at:
Email: customercare@support.match.com
Chat: Please log in to your account then click the gear icon or go to your Settings and select Help. From there, select Contact Us and then Chat With Us. We're available Monday through Friday 8am to 6pm CST.
If you could, we would greatly appreciate your assistance by providing the following information:
* Did you initially contact a phone number for assistance?
* How did you find the number that you called? (Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc.?)
* Did you search through your phone, tablet, or PC Computer?
* What browser did you use? (Firefox, Safari, Chrome, Internet Explorer, etc.)
* What were the search terms you used?
* Did you provide credit card or payment information?
For assistance with money loss, if you have not already done so I’d like to reiterate the importance of contacting the authorities such as the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at https://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx so this matter can be investigated. Please file a report with them immediately.
If needed, we will be glad to cooperate with their investigation into this matter. They can contact our Legal Department via legaldept@match.com, or they can write to us at the address listed below. Our Legal Department will be happy to work with the authorities to be sure this matter is expedited.
Our mailing Address is:
General Counsel C/O Match.com
P.O. Box 25458
Dallas, Texas 75225
Thank you again for your help. We look forward to hearing from you.
Warm regards,
Trust and Safety
7News has reached out to Match.com and its customer care department and its public relations department but so far has not received an official statement.
The good news is that Lisa Becker was able with help from her credit card company to reverse all the bogus charges and get her money back.
Let's hope she finds that special someone, too.