Can it happen to me? Can it happen to you?
In April 2022, during school spring break, our family went on vacation to Orlando, Florida. It was a truly great family trip. On the morning of our return flight, we received the gloomy notification: our flights had been canceled, and our trip home was postponed by two days. The impact? Two missed days of work and school. We scrambled to find alternative flights, called the airline, and even went to the airport. You can imagine the emotional stress and frustration.
Why target people who are already in a vulnerable emotional state?
My husband suggested we post a complaint on the airline’s Facebook page, so we did. That’s when things got a little strange. I wrote something on Facebook and soon after received a message from someone named Laura, claiming to be an agent of the airline who would help us. I checked her profile, and it appeared to be a legitimate customer service account. She asked for details about our flight, but since it was Facebook Messenger, I only shared my email address. Then she asked me to verify my information using a crypto wallet. At that point, my analytical brain recognized it as a scam, but my emotional side was still hopeful and didn’t want to believe it. When I asked for clarification, she suggested I install a remote access tool so she could “help me from my device,” reassuring me that it wouldn’t take long. That’s when my emotional side caught up, and I fully realized this was a scam.
The aftermath
It was 10 PM, and I couldn’t sleep, replaying the situation in my head. Wow, I was almost scammed. How did this happen? Apparently, when you are emotionally tied to the scam, it's nearly game over. The scammer was preying on frustrated people who had posted on Facebook amidst a wave of flight cancellations. I began to wonder how common this type of scam is, as I had never heard of it before. What struck me most was the emotional investment I had. It was so strong that I ignored all the red flags and continued the conversation—until I recognized the familiar signs of a crypto account takeover and remote access attack.
How strong is the emotional connection?
I recently read a great overview of the psychology behind scams and why people fall for them. In short, everyone has off days or challenging situations and can become vulnerable to hope, fear, or the prospect of quick financial returns. I’ve spoken to fraud teams at several financial institutions and insurance companies that have strong controls to detect scam payments in real time. They often call victims in the middle of a scam to warn them, but unfortunately, many victims don’t believe the bank or insurance broker and proceed with the transaction anyway. This is common in cases of authorized push payment fraud, romance scams, and scams targeting the elderly, like grandparent scams.
We need to stop scams before people get emotionally invested. That’s the only way to break the vicious cycle of attachment, victimization, shame, and the long road to reimbursement—which can take months, involve authorities and investigations, and often yield no results due to the lack of regulation in this space, leaving consumers to fight alone against scams.
