Scammers Spoof Wells Fargo Phone Number To Steal $5,800 After Fake ‘Best Buy’ Purchase Alert: Report

An equestrian coach reportedly lost thousands after falling victim to a spoofing scam that offered to protect her bank account from fraud.

NBC 7 in San Diego reports that in June, Alixe Garcia received a text asking her if she authorized a large purchase at Best Buy.

Garcia received a call after texting back “no”.  She says she trusted the call the moment she answered the phone because the caller ID showed it was from a Wells Fargo customer service number.

Garcia says that during the 41-minute call, it sounded as if she was talking with someone who was able to view her accounts. She ended up transferring $5,700 to Apple Cash, believing that the money would be deposited into her new Wells Fargo account that the caller supposedly helped her create.

Thirty minutes later, when she logged in, the money was not there.

“I waited another 30 minutes. I’m, like, ‘Maybe it’s a little slow.’ No money. Then I was just, like, sick thinking about it.” 

She called the bank the next morning, but the agent told her that the person she was talking to was not from the bank.

Her money is also gone. Wells Fargo says that its security controls were functioning as intended, and Garcia ultimately authorized the transfers.

The bank warns consumers that if they get a similar call asking them to send a payment, transfer funds or send their physical cards to stop fraud in their account, they should immediately hang up and call their bank directly.

“Safeguarding our customers’ assets is our top priority, and we are actively working to raise awareness of common scams through various resources and ongoing education. We have robust security measures in place and conduct thorough investigations of fraud and scam reports before making claim decisions.”

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