BALTIMORE — A new homeowner turned to Facebook Marketplace to offload some furniture, but instead of making money, he nearly lost thousands.
“It wound up being me receiving $100 for a sofa to me losing $6,000 from a scammer,” said Jake Larkin.
It was the same day Larkin closed on his new home. The previous owners left their furniture, so he listed it on Facebook Marketplace and right away was contacted by a buyer.
“Then I got an email through Zelle saying that in order for me to get the $100 in my account, I had to ask the [buyer] for $200 more, and then give them the $200 back and the remaining $100 would be in my account,” Larkin explained.
The email, purportedly from “zelle pay,” stated these steps were necessary because Larkin needed to upgrade to a business account.
“I thought that was very odd. I googled Zelle customer service,” said Larkin.
And he clicked on one of the first options with the title “Zelle Customer Service 24/7 Support Available Contact Us Today.”
“He just basically agreed with me, you know, said it's a common problem and that happens all the time. And he said, this is what we have to do to resolve it, and just kept guiding me through steps trying to confuse me. And he did, he just really confused me,” said Larkin. “By the time I got off the phone with them and logged in my account that's when I noticed my account was almost empty and I just started freaking out. That's when I called Bank of America.”
The website falsely claimed to be Zelle customer support. WMAR-2 News Mallory Sofastaii called the phone number on their website and was immediately connected to someone claiming to be Zelle customer service. After disclosing she was a reporter, the person hung up on her.
Fortunately for Larkin, Bank of America refunded his money.
Angie Barnett, president and CEO of the Better Business of Bureau of greater Maryland, said other victims haven’t been as lucky, and they’ve seen an increase in scam reports on Facebook Marketplace where the buyer appears to be local.
“We always ask ourselves, why are Facebook accounts hacked? Why does that happen? And this is a great example. I would be willing to bet the legitimate person who has that account, their Facebook page was hacked, and the scammer is now using that hacked profile to establish that legitimacy,” Barnett said.
And in Larkin’s situation, he encountered a second scam while trying to avoid the first.
“In that web browser search, he was directed to a fake website. That website is directing him to a phone number for customer support. It was a scammer. The scammer, then in that conversation posing as a customer support person, actually got his bank information and with that information was able to wipe out the checking account very quickly,” said Barnett.
“I just should have trusted my gut, and I didn't. I just trusted these people too much. And the thing is, you get 100 scam calls a day on your phone, and you just kind of blow it off, but the thing is, is that I reached out to them. I researched their number, and I reached out to them. So just that fact alone, I was very trusting of them,” Larkin said.
If the buyer offers to send you money before they've seen the item in-person that's usually a red flag. Larkin recommends checking with a friend or family member if you think you may be targeted by a scam.
And while the emails sent to Larkin appeared to be from Zelle, the sender’s address was actually a Gmail account. Zelle has their own email domain, @Zellepay.com, or contact would come directly from your bank.
A spokeswoman with Early Warning Services, LLC, Zelle’s network operator, sent WMAR-2 News the statement below:
"We continually monitor impersonator websites, including fake customer service numbers, and will take appropriate action. I have forwarded your email to the right team to investigate.
We encourage your viewers and all consumers to always refer to the official website of the organizations they are trying to connect with and contact the organization through the information listed on their official website."
Earlier this year, Sofastaii reported that EWS was revising its rules to better protect users from fraud schemes, however, they wouldn't provide any details.
READ MORE: Zelle's operator confirms fraud rule change, but current users lack recourse
If you've fallen victim to a scam involving a payment app, it's important to call your bank right away. You can also file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by clicking here.