Vulnerability helped make her a prime target for an investment scam that cost her more than US$20,000 and took a psychological toll as well as a financial one – a situation the Better Business Bureau says is increasingly common. —It was summer 2023. L, who's in her 30s, had relocated to another state from the Bay Area for a job that didn't work out.
L vaguely recalled meeting Leena. Sort of. She'd met lots of people at events over the years and didn't remember every single person she'd ever talked to. She figured Leena was a friend of a friend, and in that moment, she needed a friend. Some people in the world have made real money investing in cryptocurrency, which makes victims think,"Why not me, too?" Galvan said. There are sites and apps that let you use bitcoin, ethereum and other cryptocurrencies to make purchases from places like PlayStation and Apple. The Los Angeles Lakers play at Crypto.com Arena.
She researched the company and found some bad reviews. And she couldn't find any social media presence or advertisements for the company, which made her even more suspicious. When she confronted Leena's boss about it, he got defensive and said maybe they shouldn't work together. He had a smooth explanation for every question she asked. L felt like she couldn't let the opportunity go, so she swallowed her doubts.
Scammers can now automate their entire operation, she said. A chatbot can be running a romance scam. One person can be running a thousand of those chatbots from one phone. And generative AI also allows scammers to create realistic-seeming photos that won't be findable with reverse image search. At that point, she knew it had all been a scam. She was out more than US$20,000 of her own money she'd invested in funding orders.