‘Worst nightmare,’ cries victim after $23K life savings vanished from account – bank made a mistake but refused to help
A MOM lost her life savings of $23,000 after the account she’d had with a bank for almost 40 years was targeted.
The woman was locked in a battle with her bank after her daughter noticed the cash was missing from her mother’s account.
GettyA woman lost over $23,000 from her bank account after a scammer made multiple transactions (stock photo)[/caption]
GettyThe scammer called her bank and provided correct banking information, allowing them to sign up for online banking and change the account’s PIN (stock photo)[/caption]
Nazma Sayeed Yousuf, 66, had been banking with the Bank of Montreal (BMO) for almost 40 years in 2021, the year she experienced the huge loss.
In the decades that Yousuf had been banking with BMO, she never once opened an online banking account, CBC News reported.
Instead, Yousuf opted to go in person to withdraw money and received monthly paper bank statements.
Yousuf’s refusal to set up online banking is what alarmed her daughter, Sharmeen Yousuf, to potential fraud on her mother’s account.
While looking through the statements of the joint accounts the mother and daughter share, Yousuf noticed several unfamiliar transactions, including Interac e-transfers and payments to a prepaid credit card.
Over a one month period, bank records showed $23,716 transferred from the account.
The money was moved via electronic transfers to separate email accounts, four payments to a Visa card, and three bill payments.
A total of $15,000 worth of transactions were funded by a mutual fund redemption.
One day before the appearance of the first suspicious transaction, someone allegedly posing as Yousuf had called BMO asking to set up online banking and to change the debit card PIN.
The caller provided Yousuf’s correct debit card number and answered three security questions about Yousuf’s recent transaction history correctly, thereby allowing them access to Yousuf’s account.
Yousuf wonders how the fraudster could know the information from her debit card as she claims her card never left her wallet and she hadn’t traveled from her Ottawa home.
The family suspects the scammer of having made a duplicate card, but the bank inexplicably ruled out that theory.
A senior BMO employee admitted a bank telephone agent had breached protocol by allowing both actions to occur, CBC News reported.
“There’s a lot of fault that happened by the employee that took that call and that’s being taken care [of] on our end,” a BMO employee said in an audio recording reviewed by the news outlet.
Despite the admittance of the mistake, BMO reportedly refused to reimburse Yousuf the money she lost due to inconsistencies gathered during its investigation into the fraud claim.
“Although I can’t get into all of the particulars of our internal review, it was confirmed that the card has not left your possession and legitimate transactions took place during the same timeframe as the reported unauthorized transactions, which do not follow a specific fraud pattern,” an email from the bank to the family reportedly said.
“Due to the inconsistent information obtained during our review, we are unable to offer reimbursement for the disputed transactions.”
The bank’s suspicion of the family left Yousuf feeling embarrassed and ashamed, her daughter said.
“When we put our money in the bank, we trust the institution. We trust that our money will be safe,” she said.
“This is every senior’s worst nightmare.”
The U.S. Sun contacted BMO for comment on the case.
Top tips on avoiding scams from a bank
As scams become more sophisticated with the use of artificial intelligence, it is important you know how to spot a scam:
Be skeptical of online deals that seem too good to be true, especially on social media.
Scammers will often use tactics to make you panicked so you make quick decisions – be cautious if you are told to take immediate action and verify who has contacted you.
Chase Bank warns customers to “never return any unexpected funds without calling Chase first.”
Never send money to someone you have only spoken to online or by phone as this is likely a romance scam.
Unless you 100% know who you are talking to, never give someone remote access to your device.
Never accept help from strangers at an ATM and always be vigilant when making withdrawals.
Do not send money or click any links indicating that you have won a prize.
Source: Chase.com
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