How a father lost $16,000 in just seconds after falling victim to a convincing scam text message
- Adelaide father loses $16,000 from ‘hi dad’ scam
- Fraudster impersonated his daughter needing money
A father has revealed he was scammed out of $16,000 after transferring funds to who he believed was his daughter.
Andreas Flenche, from Reynella in Adelaide‘s south, received a text message from a scammer posing as his daughter in need of help.
‘Hi Dad, I accidentally dropped my mobile phone down the loo, it is damaged, so I’m using an old one, save this # for the time being,’ the text read.
Adelaide father Andreas Flenche (pictured) has been scammed out of $16,000 after a fraudster posing as his daughter reached out saying she needs money after she dropped her phone in the toilet
The text message read: ‘Hi Dad, I accidentally dropped my mobile phone down the loo, it is damaged, so I’m using an old one, save this # for the time being’
The Adelaide father was then conned into transferring money to the scammer and he told 7News he just thought he was doing the right thing.
‘You think you’re doing the right thing by helping your family,’ he said.
‘Then you find out that it’s not like that at all.’
Mr Flenche is just one of many Australians who has been conned by ‘Hi Dad’ or ‘Hi Mum’ scams also known as ‘family impersonation scams’.
More than 2,200 people have fallen victim to this type of scam in 2023 with more than $275,000 taken from everyday Australians.
A Scamwatch spokesman said the scams are becoming increasingly prevalent.
‘Victims are contacted – most often through WhatsApp – by a scammer posing as a family member or friend,’ the spokesman said.
‘They will claim they have lost or damaged their phone and are making contact from a new temporary number.
‘The scammer will ask for personal information such as money to help urgently pay a bill or replace their phone.’
They said another variant of the scam includes cyber criminals who use an alpha-tag/ senderID (where the message will appear as if it’s been sent from your ‘Mum’ or ‘Dad’).
The messages could say: ‘I’m at Woolworths and bought the wrong card with me. Can you please send me $150 I will pay you back when I get home,’ followed by someone’s BSB and account number.
Scamwatch warned: ‘Consumers who receive messages from a number they don’t recognise should independently verify the contact by reaching out to the person the messenger is purporting to be.’
