Wichita woman out more than $100K after falling victim to ‘Microsoft scam’
A Wichita woman in her late 70s is out more than $100,000 after she was tricked by a hoax that Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett is now warning the rest of the public about.
Thieves involved in the so-called “Microsoft scam” reach out to victims by phone, email or pop-up messages claiming their computers or accounts have critical issues that need an immediate fix. The scammers then either offer phony technical support as a technician or engineer or provide a phone number for victims to call for help — and trick them into turning over personal information or cash.
It’s a scam that’s been around in some form since 2009, Bennett said in a news release Tuesday. But people continue to fall for it.
In the recent Wichita case, the woman received a message on her computer warning of a problem, the release says. She called the phone number included in the message and was told by the person who answered the line that her Social Security number had been compromised.
The scammer told the woman that the fake breach put her savings at risk, so she “needed to transfer money out of her bank account” for security reasons, the release says.
The scammer further worried the woman with a concocted story about how other people were listening in on her phone calls.
The woman was told by the scammer that Microsoft would remove a virus infecting her computer. But to keep her cash safe in the meantime, she was told to withdraw money from her bank and transferred it into other, safer accounts designated by a Microsoft engineer.
If the bank questioned her large withdraws, the woman was told by the scammer to say that the money was for investments for her family.
In all, the woman lost more than $100,000 to the scam during a series of phone calls that took place from July to September. Eventually her family discovered the fraud.
Authorities say she probably won’t get her money back.
“Investigators with the Office of the District Attorney are in the process of trying to recover the money, but it is very rare that lost funds are able to be retrieved in cases like this,” Bennett said in the release.
“The District Attorney’s Office does not want anyone else to fall into this trap. To avoid scams, please hang up the phone if you receive an unsolicited call from someone asking for personal information, or if the caller asks you to wire money, mail cash, or put money onto gift cards.”
If you or a loved one do fall victim to such a scam, authorities say you should report it to law enforcement.
This story was originally published September 28, 2021 at 11:41 AM.
