Scammers posing as Amazon swindle man out of thousands with one text message, police say

The victim previously warned friends and family to watch out for scammers, police said. Then he became a victim.Golden Gate Media

A Bay Area man who said he warned friends and family about not being duped by scammers was victimized himself, police said. The victim was duped out of $4,000 when scammers led him to believe lie after lie in what is becoming a common tactic employed by criminal syndicates.

“On Tuesday, June 8, a 75-year old Daly City resident reported being the victim of a scam,” police stated. “The victim told the officer that earlier in the day, he received a text from a subject posing as an Amazon employee. The text was sent from a 909 area code, and it read: ‘You spent 3463.54$ for Haier Dishwasher at AMZN Order id RT60821BQPOE on 06-08-2021. Call NOw 1-844-389-9793, If NOT YOU.’”

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Many of these texts and e-mails are sent daily by scammers who hope to get just one person to fall for the rouse.

“The victim called the number and said it was a mistake as he had never purchased a dishwasher,” police continued. “The victim said the subject gave him a convoluted story about the mistake with the transaction to his Amazon account—that his ‘IP address was compromised’, and someone must have accessed his account remotely. The victim said the subject told him if he went to Target and purchased gift cards in the amount of $4,000, his Amazon account could be fixed. The victim said the suspect told him if the Target employees questioned him about the purchase, to tell them it was for a family member’s wedding or graduation. The victim said the Target employees, indeed, questioned him and informed him about scams, but the victim rebuffed their advice and told them the cards were for a wedding, as instructed by the suspect.”

The scammers, in this case, were persuasive enough to get the victim to fall for the act.

“The victim purchased $4,000 worth of cards and provided the suspect with the numbers on the back of the cards,” police stated. “After he provided the numbers, the victim said the suspect instructed him to purchase more cards. The victim said at that point, he knew he was being scammed and stopped. The victim told the officer he always warned his friends and loved ones of similar scams, and that he personally felt stupid for falling for such a scam.”

The Federal Trade Commission warns these types of scams are increasing in regularity. It recommends, “If you get an unexpected call or message about a problem with any of your accounts, hang up. Do not press 1 to speak with customer support. Do not call a phone number they gave you. Do not give out your personal information. If you think there may actually be a problem with one of your accounts, contact the company using a phone number or website you know is real.”

They have a website with advice on how to deal with individuals who may be trying to steal your money.

“Some of you may be perplexed as to how someone can fall for a scam like this,” police warned. "All I can say is that these scammers are GOOD at what they do, and they know just what to say to make people believe them.” 

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