28-year-old Fort Worth teacher lost $32,000 after a liar tricked him into sharing his personal banking information

After spending years saving money in hopes of starting a family, Russell Leahy and his wife are now forced to pay their salaries.

Leahy, a 28-year-old teacher from Fort Worth, Texas, who recently lost $32,000, cheaters deceived him into revealing sensitive financial information.

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“This is my life savings,” Lexi told WFAA. “Literally, I never felt like the wind was taken from my sails. I never really felt like I was about to pass out, but to me it really felt like the end of the world.”

Leahy reportedly contacted a fraudster who claimed to be a representative of Chase Bank. The supposed bank representative called Lich to inform that his account had been compromised and he needed to protect his finances by transferring the cash to a secure account. To look real, it only takes a few text messages and some fake banking information.

“I can’t even believe how complicated it is,” Leahy told the WFAA.

Now the newlyweds try to warn people about the scams that have been caused, which has lost everything to him in a bid to stop others from falling into the same plan.

Fraud and scam

Unfortunately for Leahy, things got worse when he contacted Chase Bank to report the incident. According to the WFAA, the bank told Leahy that fraud protection did not cover his account, believing Leahy was a victim of scams rather than economic fraud.

In making this distinction, Chase Bank returned to Leahy’s account, which was only a small part of his total loss. When the WFAA contacted Chase Bank for comment, the bank clarified about the difference between fraud and scam.

“The fraud in a bank account involves people who illegally access other people’s accounts, withdrawing, transferring or purchasing without the permission of the account holder,” the bank said in an email response.

On the other hand, a scam is “a deceptive plan or skill to deceive someone with their money or other valuable assets”, and that’s what happened to Leahy.

Chase Bank’s response may not be what Leahy wants to hear, but that doesn’t stop him from sharing his story to prevent others from making the same mistakes.

“I would rather be the sacrificial lamb of these other people, maybe saving someone else’s money,” he said. “I really want to look forward and continue my life without having to start from scratch.”

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How to avoid falling similar scams

Unfortunately, Leahy’s heartbreaking story is not unique. Leahy’s fallen “phishing” scam is one of the most common scams in today’s digital world.

Phishing can help reveal sensitive information by tricking victims into revealing sensitive information via phone or text messages. Email was once the most popular method of phishing scams, but since then, Scammers has expanded its exercises to include phone calls, texts, and social media. Phishing by phone is also called “fishing”.

Although it is difficult to determine how many people are hurt by phishing scams every year, 323,972 Internet users around the world reported to authorities that they were in trouble with phishing in 2021, according to AAG IT Services.

To avoid falling into such a scam, people must be informed and alert to discover potential threats. There are some practical steps you can take to protect yourself from becoming a victim:

1. Don’t rely on your caller ID, as a scam may trick your bank phone number or another institution you belong to to gain trust.

2. Never share your account information with anyone who may ask for it. Your bank will never call or email you to request this information.

3. Protect your account with multi-factor authentication. If the scammer has access to your username and password, multi-factor authentication will make it more difficult for the scammer to log into your account.

4. Ignore transaction requests via phone calls, texts or emails you did not initiate.

5. If in doubt, please call your bank – or any institution that the potential scammer may represent, directly to verify any issues shared with you.

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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is without any warranty of any kind.