Scammers’ Adopt New Strategy To Dupe Victims

… How To Avoid Falling Victim

As scammers notice that their victims are getting used to how they operate, they find other strategies to defraud unsuspecting individuals.

The new strategy is to call a random number and from the flow of the conversation, lie to the call receiver that a relative of theirs is sick and needs urgent medical attention. They will then proceed to ask for money to deposit for the said ‘treatment’.

THE WHISTLER spoke to some of the victims of this trend and the same strategy was used by the scammers on all of them.

Grace Okafor, a grandmother who resides in Anambra State, got a call from a strange number two weeks ago.

However, the caller who happened to be a man, told her that he was her son-in-law and was desperately in need of money as his wife (her daughter) was sick and was admitted at the hospital.

“I had been looking forward to my daughter’s husband’s call because he had promised to call me. So when a male voice called claiming to be him, I believed it without any doubt,” she narrated.

The 70-year-old mother of five became very worried after hearing the disturbing news. She tried calling her daughter’s number and the phone rang severally but she did not pick up. She began to feel that the caller might be genuine.

“He said he had already deposited N50,000 for the treatment but needed another N50,000. He sent an account number, 1016094844, FCMB, with the account holder name ‘Dr. Ohaka Chioma Veronica.’ I didn’t have the money. I had to call my eldest son to inform him about what was happening,” she narrated.

Grace stated that her son had later called his sister’s number and that she eventually picked up and told them that she was indeed alright.

“She had gone out to buy some foodstuffs and left her phone at home. That was why she couldn’t answer when we called,” she explained.

Grace, who disclosed that she was left traumatized after the incident, however thanked God that she did not fall into the scammer’s trap of sending the money he had asked for.

But Mark Ayo’s aunt was not so lucky. Ayo, an IT expert in Abuja, stated that the scammer had called his mother’s friend, posing as him (Ayo) and claiming that he was involved in an accident and needed some money for treatment in the hospital.

“This happened late last year. I was in Abuja here. I didn’t even know what was happening. When the scammer called her and she asked who was on the line, he said ‘your son’. So she asked, ‘Ayo’? and he said ‘yes’,” he narrated.

When she asked why he was calling with a strange number, the scammer told her that his phone went missing after the accident.

“She also asked why he didn’t call his mother, and he explained that she had high blood pressure (BP) and didn’t want to aggravate her condition. He had convincingly answered all the questions she had asked,” he narrated.

At the end, the scammer was able to get N50,000 from Ayo’s aunt who later discovered that he was hale and hearty.

“The scammer had asked for N70,000, but she told him she only had N50,000, and he told her to send it. She promised to get the remaining money. When she got it, she decided to call first to know how ‘Ayo’ was. That was when she discovered it was a scam,” he said.

For Elizabeth Eze, her husband was scammed during the network outage that happened last month.

Eze told THE WHISTLER that her husband was called by some people who claimed that she had been shot by robbers in the stomach and had been rushed to the hospital.

She added that they had told him that they were calling from the hospital where she was rushed to and urged him to quickly send money so that they could commence treatment and save her life.

She explained that her husband, who was out of town, desperately tried to reach her or any other relations of his via phone but couldn’t.“

“The incident happened on the 14th of March, 2024. Scammers used the opportunity of network fluctuation to scam people. My hubby has been out of town for a while now. He got a call that day and was told that robbers came to the house and shot me in the stomach, that I was in a critical condition and needed to be operated on,” she said.

Eze added that her husband who was now in a panic mode after he couldn’t reach anyone, hurriedly transferred the money they requested.

“He transferred N300,000 to them and packed his bags to return immediately. Before he stepped out, he decided to reach out to his siblings to go and meet me at the hospital. This time, he got them. They tried my number, luckily it rang and I told them nothing of such happened.

“According to him, when he got that call before transferring the money, he tried reaching almost everyone close to me but the network was bad,” she narrated.

She warned Nigerians to be careful and verify stories from mysterious callers before taking any decisions.

“Be careful, don’t be in a haste to send money to any mysterious caller. Nigeria is too tough to lose money to fraudulent people. We have reported it to the bank but they said the account is not traceable as they have already wiped out money in the account. The network provider also said the phone number wasn’t properly registered.

“We were told the bank account they used was created with an online app, using fake BVN. It is traceable to no one, and the phone number was a ‘roadside registration’,” she narrated.

Why The Scammers Succeed Most Times

“Love,” Dr. Sola Adediran, a psychologist said is the reason. He explained that the love, for example, a mother has for her daughter, could prevent her from thinking straight when such calls from scammers come her way.

“Psychologically, what makes one fall is unconditional love. We cherish our children. We would want to do everything possible to help our children get succor. The scammer will now want to explore that love. It happens in all relationships,” he said.

Adediran who Director Directorate of Affiliated Institutions and Programmes, Emmanuel Alayande University of Education in Oyo State, advised anyone who gets calls from unknown numbers to be patient and ask pertinent questions to ascertain the veracity of the information they have received, before taking any actions.

How They Get People’s Contact

According to an Identity Theft Protection Company, Identity Guard (IG), scammers can get people’s phone numbers through many ways. One of the ways is via social media profiles.

It explained that many social media services (and other online accounts) require people’s phone numbers for account creation. It noted that without tightening up one’s security settings, one’s phone number and other sensitive information could be easily available to scammers.

IG also stated that scammers can buy people’s phone numbers from data broker individuals or companies. A data broker, it explained, collects and sells consumer information ike phone numbers and email addresses.

The Company also warned that ‘If you’ve ever answered or responded to previous phone scams, your contact information could be on a “target list” that scammers buy and sell to one other.’

Another way through which scammers can obtain numbers is ‘Shoulder surfing’. According to the IG, scammers can watch you type your phone number on a computer or mobile device and grab it.

Also, hackers can send you fraudulent text messages or phishing emails, tricking you into providing your phone number or other personal data.

The company added that in some cases, scammers don’t even need your phone number.

“Autodialers generate and call random phone numbers. When you pick up, scammers can begin their tricks,” it said.

How To Protect Your Phone

A security protection and cyber crime analyst, Oluwafemi Aratokun-Ale, advised that to protect personal details, people should be wary of opening emails from people they don’t know.

Aratokun-Ale who is the Chief Executive Officer of Target Search Global Nigeria Ltd, urged people to be careful with links and new website addresses.

He further advised; “Secure your personal information, stay informed on the latest cyber threats, use strong passwords and keep your software up to date and maintain preventative software programs.”

When an unknown person calls or contacts, Aratokun-Ale advises that people should not panic but stay calm.

“Copy the number that called. If possible record his or her voice. Listen carefully to the caller’s background. Do not share your location with the caller. Ask if you can call the caller back, and do not give your exact information at any point,” he said.

The cyber crime analyst also spoke of the need for more awareness on cybercrime in the country, adding that it will help Nigerians to easily detect when they are being scammed.

“Security officers must also be trained on what to do and what they also must not do,” he said.