I think I was just scammed out of all my money

amother

Garnet

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 1:10 pm

Oh my gosh you must have the deepest pit in your stomach. This is so terrible.

How much money did you transfer? Do you at least have other accounts that are left untouched?

I’m going to say a perek of tehillim for you right now. I don’t know if it helps to hear but this is min hashamayim even though you feel like it’s your fault.

amother

↑ Ebony

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 1:12 pm

amother Mimosa wrote:

She’s been responding and seems unfazed. I think people need to not put their insecurities on others.

True.
What's also true it that people need to practice a bit more sensitivity in how we reply to OP and try to stay on tangent with what's really going on.
I'm sorry if you felt I was snappy, I was just thinking how OP must feel seeing a post telling her how she messed up.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 1:13 pm

I'm relatively unfazed bc it wasn't more than a few hundred dollars, but I wasted my whole morning losing all my money.

The phone call took over an hour and they even stayed on the line for like 20 minutes after the transfer. At that point I realized that I'm not getting my money back and hung up.

amother

Gold

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 1:13 pm

You seem fairly coherent and calm for someone who was scammed out of all their money.
Was it a significant amount? Do you have other accounts? How are you handling it so well?!?!

amother

↑ OP ↓

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 1:14 pm

amother Garnet wrote:

Thank you

amother

↑ OP

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 1:15 pm

amother Gold wrote:

You seem fairly coherent and calm for someone who was scammed out of all their money.
Was it a significant amount? Do you have other accounts? How are you handling it so well?!?!

Not a good thing, bc I just shut down my feelings when things like this happen so Sad

icedcoffee

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 1:25 pm

amother OP wrote:

The phone call took over an hour and they even stayed on the line for like 20 minutes after the transfer.

Just to add on to this, for anyone reading and to make you feel less "stupid," they do this on purpose to wear you out. By the time they get to the transferring money part, your brain is exhausted, you're not operating at 100%, and you want it to be over.

I think I posted this on another recent scam thread but this article is really interesting and informative. She's a literal financial journalist who should "know better" but lost $50k in a phone call scam, and she goes through exactly how they mentally got her to a point where she willingly handed it all over. https://www.thecut.com/article......html

amother

Azalea ↓

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 3:42 pm

Something like this once happened to me. I lost $2,000 and it took me months just to finally have a day go by that I didn't think about it. It was very traumatizing and violating. I really hope that you didn't lose as much as I did. I felt so stupid, but really it can happen to anyone, these scammers are really good, try not to feel bad about yourself....I spoke to a lot of people and someone told me they know of a really smart millionaire business owner who got scammed out of millions of dollars (the FBI only gets involved when it's in the millions...otherwise no one is there to help you). It can happen to the smartest of people. Don't beat yourself up. It's not your fault.

Also I tried EVERYTHING to get my money back. There's really nothing to be done and I didn't want to believe anyone who told me that either, but they were right. I spent too much time thinking I could do something and get it back. I would say to spend a little time to try but don't make yourself crazy for weeks like I did...just prolongs the pain.

Sending you hugs. I know how you feel!

amother

↑ Azalea

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 3:46 pm

amother OP wrote:

Oh, now I see this, and I'm so relieved that it was a few hundred and not more, BH. (Not minimizing the loss of course, that's still money and still violating).

amother

Impatiens

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 3:54 pm

Sorry OP you went through this.

But I don’t get why banks can’t have a system in place where a wire can be stopped if fraud is suspected? Especially since wires usually take a day to transfer.

simcha12plus

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 3:56 pm

do not feel stupid.
this happens to so many smart, educated people.
the people who do these things are ganavim of the trickiest kind.

I’m so sorry this happened to you.
you are an innocent victim

Cheiny

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 4:02 pm

amother Ebony wrote:

Yeah, I'm sure OP knows all this too. How is it helpful to her now other then rubbing salt in her wounds?

It’s helpful info for others here who may be naive and could fall for a similar scam.

ShishKabob

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 4:08 pm

Sometimes there's a gezeira from shomayim that something bad is supposed to happen to a family member.
Hashem in his kindness, lets you have a monetary loss instead of that, like the poster that said Yaakov Avinu.

Hugs op!!!! It feels so bad!

Golde

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 4:24 pm

So sorry, OP. My mother was scammed similarly a few years ago. The bank and police couldn't do anything as she's had transferred the money "willingly". It's such a disgrace. It makes me angry just to think about it. I really feel for you.

amother

↑ Sienna

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 4:51 pm

amother OP wrote:

what do you mean?

In that story, he was supposed to be killed but he got away with giving up all of his possessions because "Ani chashuv k'mes". My point being if there's nothing you can do about it, it can help to understand that sometimes a smaller painful thing can save us from a greater one.

Bubby6

Mon, Jul 29 2024, 5:45 pm

amother Sienna wrote:

It might sound random but what comes to my mind is the story of Yaakov Avinu and Elifaz. Elifaz was going to kill him but Yaakov said take everything I own and then I'll have nothing and it'll be like you told me.

Who knows, maybe you just saved your or a family member's life?

What an amazing thought,
So sorry OP for you, Allow yourself to grieve