Just a heads up about a new scam. If you've got older DCs it's worth a look.

[Laiste]

I'm assuming they go on to give bank account details to pay into.

Ignore voting by the way :)

I think I'd know that wasn't my child - full sentences, no spelling mistakes, punctuation, no abbreviations..... [laugh]

Seriously though - you have to be so careful of everything thee days

I suppose the best thing is to ask teen to text something that a scammer wouldn't know eg. siblings birthday or name of last school.

Who would fall for this? It’s so obviously a scam.

Thanks for sharing.

Neither of my 15 year olds would send me any messages like that. I'm lucky to get a grunt by text now

How people fall for this I have absolutely no idea

There was a similar WhatsApp scam in the news where someone transferred money as the "daughter" said they had haemorrhoids and needed money as the nhs waiting list was too long. The correct name of their daughter was used in that one though.

@Capferret

I suppose the best thing is to ask teen to text something that a scammer wouldn't know eg. siblings birthday or name of last school.

Or phone them.

Yeah if it was me i'd phone them. I guess we're all different though and they throw these nets out only expecting to catch 1 in 100? 1000?

Someone on our village FB page fell for it. I just thought i'd share it.

Seeline - ''I think I'd know that wasn't my child - full sentences, no spelling mistakes, punctuation, no abbreviations..... [laugh]''

lol

Message on my phone recently " hi Mom, I have a new phone".

Since I don't have any children, I'm pretty sure it was a potential scam.

Always phone them. Immediately. Freaks the scammy fuckers out.

@FinallyHere did you reply asking for money?!

@FinallyHere

Message on my phone recently " hi Mom, I have a new phone".

Since I don't have any children, I'm pretty sure it was a potential scam.

Oooh you had one.

See i would have thought that by the time you'd filtered out all the people that:

a) don't have kids the right age
b) would immediately think 'scam'
c) would ring back immediately
d) only have one child so the 'which one is this' would catch them out
e) are male (so aren't 'mum') so they'd know it was fishy

there'd be hardly anyone left to make it worth doing!

but i guess there is, and it does

My husband and I wouldn't fall for it, but if their grandfather received something like that, he would immediately be sending double what ever he thought his grandchild was needing.

My brother had this "Hi it's your sister I have a new number" and he sent them money, he only realised when he asked my mum and she called me on my actual number to prove I didn't have a new number, I've always told him if that happens again to ask something that no-one else but me and him know, like the nicknames we gave each other as children.

Lol my teens would never send text messages like this. Ever.

Horrible scam though nevertheless

@artquejtion

My husband and I wouldn't fall for it, but if their grandfather received something like that, he would immediately be sending double what ever he thought his grandchild was needing.

DS's grandad would too. Thankfully though he'd send a cheque, which wouldn't do the scammers any good at all!

And yes that said yes the grandparents probably could easily fall for this.

Luckily my DM and DDad are sceptical about anything like this and text or call straight away to check

@artquejtion

My husband and I wouldn't fall for it, but if their grandfather received something like that, he would immediately be sending double what ever he thought his grandchild was needing.

Bless him. You know i think my mum would too.

if she ever took her mobile out of the bread bin and turned it on

I'd know if ds had changed his number - I'm paying his contract lol

Oh no, @IsolateAndTestAgain . Was it a large amount?

Any amount is bad obvs. And 'large' is subjective of course.

@FinallyHere

Message on my phone recently " hi Mom, I have a new phone".

Since I don't have any children, I'm pretty sure it was a potential scam.

that and for me, its not mom, and quite frankly, they would have told me if they had a new phone (or more likely i would have bloody bought it for them!)!

This isn't new, has been doing the rounds for a while and before that there was the email version where people (friends/family members) told you they were stuck abroad with no access to funds and needed money transferred. I can imagine why people might have fallen for it occasionally at the beginning but I can't really understand why, with so much publicity around these scams now, TV programmes, news stories etc warnings to always double-check before sending money, that people still haven't caught on.

I almost got caughter, when my "daughter" asked me to pay a bill I told her to contact her dad, heard nothing from then on obviously. If in doubt call the "new" number, I found it unobtainable

@FinallyHere

Message on my phone recently " hi Mom, I have a new phone".

Since I don't have any children, I'm pretty sure it was a potential scam.

Or "oldest child" when you only have one?