Woman Loses $20,000 to ‘Phantom Hacker’ Scam: ‘It’s Stolen From My Kids Too’

by Gee NY

A hairstylist and mother of two from the north side, Milan Jackson, was recently scammed out of $20,000 in a scheme that the FBI has now dubbed the “Phantom Hacker” scam.

This scam has reportedly cost victims millions of dollars across the United States, targeting individuals by impersonating trusted financial institutions.

Jackson, who has been working toward opening her own hair salon, recounts the stressful day it all began. While attending to a client, she received a call from someone claiming to be a representative from Bank of America.

“I answered the phone, and it is a man who tells me that this is Bank of America and that there was suspicious activity,” she recalls.

Checking the number on the back of her card, she confirmed it matched her bank’s phone number. The man on the line claimed that a hacker was trying to steal $20,000 from her account and advised her to act quickly to protect her money.

Jackson followed the caller’s instructions, logging in to her account and wiring the money to what she believed was a secure account.

“My anxiety’s going up, and he’s like, ‘Ok, we only have this amount of time,'” Jackson explained.

It wasn’t until moments later that she felt something was wrong. A visit to her local Bank of America branch confirmed her fears: she had fallen victim to a scam.

I still had the person on the line, and so I shut the phone off. I am hysterically crying,” Jackson said.

How the “Phantom Hacker” Works

According to the FBI, the “Phantom Hacker” scam involves fraudsters impersonating bank officials and convincing victims their accounts are under threat from hackers.

Victims are then urged to “secure” their funds by transferring them to another account, which is, in reality, controlled by the scammers. Within moments, victims lose access to their money.

FBI Special Agent Rachel LaRocque explains that legitimate financial institutions will never ask clients to transfer funds as part of a security process.

“They may even be able to spoof that bank’s phone number so that on your caller ID, it might show that it’s the bank,” added LaRocque. “Scammers do not discriminate. They want money from anybody that they can take it from.”

A Heartbreaking Loss

For Milan Jackson, the impact goes beyond the $20,000 she lost.

“It’s not just stolen from me,” she said. “It’s stolen from my kids too.”

Jackson was in the process of buying a building to expand her hair business when she fell victim to the scam. Now, her entrepreneurial dreams are on hold.

Bank of America has stated that in cases like these, they attempt to recover the lost funds but cannot guarantee success once a transfer is authorized by the account holder. They also clarified they would never ask clients to send money through services like Zelle or via wire transfers.

A Call for Awareness

Milan Jackson experience sheds light on the growing prevalence of financial scams and the need for greater public awareness.

The FBI advises individuals to be skeptical of unsolicited calls, even if they appear to come from familiar institutions, and to verify claims independently before taking any action.

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