How phishing scams work
In 2024, phishing or spoofing scams were the most common type of cybercrime reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI’s) Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). More than 193,000 Americans were the targets of these scams, losing a total of more than $70 million.
Phishing or spoofing scams trick you into giving away sensitive data, such as passwords or account information, sometimes through a fake, or spoofed, website. Scammers could also trick you into withdrawing your money and depositing it into a bitcoin account.
For Hartmann-Ortiz, the scam started with a text message she thought was from Apple, saying someone had used her account to make an unauthorized purchase. The text message also provided her with a number to call.
When she called, she was told her bank account had been compromised and her savings were at risk. There were no immediate red flags to alert Hartmann-Ortiz that it was a scam — she wasn’t asked for her bank account information or Social Security number.
But the person on the other end of the line told her that to protect her money, she needed to withdraw it all and put it in a newly created bitcoin account. Worried that she was about to lose her life savings, she did as she was told.
Still, something didn’t sit right with Hartmann-Ortiz. After speaking with her boss about what had happened, she realized she’d been scammed.
“They get you so fast. I called that number and from then on it was pretty much over,” Hartmann-Ortiz told KOB 4. Afterwards, “you feel so ashamed and so stupid.”
According to the news report, her advice to others is to trust their gut — if something seems off, it probably is. She also told the news station she wishes she had called a friend first instead of panicking and calling the scammers.
The police, FBI and her bank have said there isn’t much they can do to get her money back.
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Learn MoreWhat to do if it happens to you
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) provides a helpful guide on what to do if you’ve been scammed.
By immediately reporting the crime to your financial institution, it may be possible to cancel or reverse the transaction. If you sent cash by U.S. mail, you can contact the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and ask them to intercept the package. If you paid the scammer with gift cards, contact the company that issued them, inform them of the scam and ask them to refund your money.
Unfortunately, in the case of Hartmann-Ortiz, she withdrew her money herself and sent it to a cryptocurrency wallet she doesn't control, which makes getting the money back almost impossible.
If the scammer has your personal information, you also want to take steps to protect yourself from identity theft.
To avoid phishing scams, never click on links or open attachments in suspicious emails or texts — and never call the number provided in those emails or texts.
If the text is from your "bank," look up your bank’s phone number or go to a branch in-person to validate whether the message is real or not. Try not to give into panic — that’s what scammers are betting on.
Among the red flags the FBI says to look out for are email addresses disguised to look legitimate, errors in punctuation or grammar and requests for personal information such as passwords or bank account numbers.
Typically, scammers use a sense of urgency to induce panic and manipulate their victims into making irrational decisions. They often ask for payment in cryptocurrency or sometimes gift cards.
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