What started as a fun Sunday morning on the way home from the Buffalo Bar turned into a nightmare for one lucky person. What should have been just another regular weekend instantly turned into a traumatic experience. The victim received a call from someone purporting to be Rajesh Khan from HSBC’s card protection team. This phone call was the first step in a very deliberate and calculated scheme that would come to cost her thousands.
This call came just as she was beginning to process what happened to her the night before. Rajesh Khan had the kind of personal information that is quite alarming—for instance, she had his full name, date of birth and address. That insider knowledge only contributed to the authenticity of the discussion. This made it increasingly difficult for the victim to understand what was really happening.
Rajesh Khan continuously phoned back in the ensuing hours. Each time, he gave detailed reports on the status of what he fraudulently represented as the victim’s stolen card. The scam artist told the victim a car would be there soon to pick up the card. He created an extremely detailed decoy and provided many identifying features of the car. He even gave its licence plate number and description of the driver.
The victim thought he was communicating with actual bank employees. He was comforted when they told him that they recovered his stolen card and that he would receive a full refund in a few days. It got even worse when the victim subsequently encountered yet another employee from Visa Card Services. That person happened to be named Mark.
“Hello Mr Welch, Visa Card Services here,” Mark said in a tone that was perhaps intended to calm but instead instilled dread.
Mark then went on to explain that there were several fraudulent purchases from the victim’s bank account amounting to over £1,100. This devastating new detail came as a bombshell to the victim, who was still reeling from the unexpected news. Unbeknownst to them, they hadn’t checked their balance before calling the bank, thinking they were doing the prudent thing to protect themselves from fraud.
As days turned into weeks and then months, the victim faced many challenges while trying to reassemble her sense of reality after that nightmarish evening. It was only as time went on that it became clear that they had been victims of an elaborate con. Indeed, as the police would later say, they feared one of the assailants had seen the victim take out money from an ATM the Saturday night before. This comment provided essential information into their process of gathering personal data for their plan.
Given the tragic context of this story, it’s worth noting that the victim’s bank—unlike HSBC—was able to have all stolen money refunded in less than 10 days. This resolution wasn’t without its own myriad of complications. As a result, the victim needed to open new accounts and receive new cards. This was strictly a protective measure to stop any additional attempts at fraud.
The victim was diligent about monitoring their identity. They got monthly statements showing the credit checks that had been done in their name. This precautionary measure was implemented to help prevent any unauthorized use of their information going forward.
“Mr Welch, your cards haven’t been reported stolen,” was a recurring statement from those at the bank during follow-up conversations. This comment highlighted how truly ridiculous of a scenario this was. Perhaps more importantly, it highlighted how scammers deceive people into thinking they are doing things for their banks or investment firms.
This scam is a disturbing example of how at risk people can be in the current digital world. And, with scammers using newer and more sophisticated techniques, it’s more important than ever that consumers stay on guard. Consumers should always authenticate all unsolicited calls or text messages purporting to be from a bank or other financial institution.