tldr; scammer wants my mom's routing and account number so my mom made a new account that only has a dollar in it just in case he is a scammer. Runescape has taughtt me that trying to anti-scam is a bad idea.
So my mom was messaged by a distant relative, who she has never talked to before ,on facebook about a government grant she had received. The grant was for 200k (I know, a ridiculously huge amount). The relative gave my mom a number to text and he wanted personal details. She gave him her age, occupation, and some other stuff that wasn't super, super personal, but still personal nonetheless. He told her there would be a $500 fee upfront, and she said she can't pay it. He said he would front her the money until she receives the grant. He then asked for her routing and account number. She made a new account with her current bank and plans to give him the info for that account and I'm concerned if she does, he can still do something nefarious.
I didn't know any of this happened. Today she asked me to take her to the bank because "she has to take care of something." I take her and she sets up a new savings account. She has me as a joint owner (I think that's the correct term) for her main account because her health isn't great and she wants me to have access in case I need it. So I agreed to be on this account too. I'm also worried since my name is attached to this account as well.
There are other obvious red flags. She's never talked to this family member before, the ridiculous amount for the grant, the person she's talking to won't talk on the phone, and the way he texts is unprofessional and it seems like english isn't his first language. She agrees with most of this, but thinks she can still outsmart him and I'm concerned about that.
Submitted August 15, 2019 at 08:53PM by World79 https://ift.tt/2Z1Wlsb
