You may be used to getting text messages and emails from your boss, which is why a recent texting scam is so effective. Scammers find out where you work and pose as the CEO or other executive. Be on guard and don’t share money or information – be it your own or your company’s.
How the scam works
You receive a text from a number you don’t recognize, claiming to be from your boss. The sender knows your name, where you work and your boss’s name. It seems so real. The text message might read something like this: “Hi Chris, I’m tied up in a conference call right now but let me know if you get this text. Thanks [your boss’ name].”
In a recent BBB Scam Tracker report, a consumer shared this experience, “Text message posing as my boss, stuck in a meeting. Wanted me to get giftcards. Also texted people I know, posing as my boss as if they were texting me.”
If you reply that you received the text, you’ll be asked to do a quick task. This could be purchasing gift cards for a client or wiring funds to another business. In some cases, the scammer may ask you to send personal information to someone, often giving you a plausible reason to carry out the request.
In another BBB Scam Tracker report, a victim reported losing over $1,000 in a gift card scam. “The scammer contacted me impersonating my boss telling me he needed an urgent task completed. He told me it needed to be a secret because he wanted to surprise employees for a good job last month with gift cards. He asked me to go to the nearest store and get 5 gift cards he asked for apple and eBay cards but they did not have that so he told me to get 5 vanilla visa gift cards and load $200 on each card. He said I would get reimbursed before the end of the day. I bought the cards using my personal money and was asked to send pictures of the receipt. I did that and then he asked me to send the front and back of the cards and I for some reason did that too. I only realized after contacting my boss that this was a scam. I was able to contact vanilla and put a hold on the cards before any funds were used. However, now the funds are frozen and in a gift card and I don’t have access to the money for a possibly unknown amount of time. The scammer played to my need to be a good employee and it worked.”\
No matter how believable the reason sounds, always double-check before taking any action. Once you send the money, gift cards, or information, it will be in the hands of a con artist.
How to protect yourself from impostor scams
- Don’t trust unsolicited messages from unfamiliar numbers. If your boss regularly communicates with you via text message, save their number in your contact list. Don’t respond to potential impersonators reaching out from a different number.
- Be wary of unusual requests. If your boss has never asked you to buy gift cards, even if the request comes from a number you’ve saved, think twice. Scammers can potentially clone phone numbers and might have hijacked your boss’ number to target employees.
- Double-check with your boss personally. If a request comes from a strange number or just doesn’t sound right, call or email your boss first, using their real contact information, rather than replying to the message. It’s better to double-check than to rush into a scam. Plus, your boss will want to know if they are being impersonated, so they can warn their other employees.
- If you suspect a scam, don’t reply. If you’re fairly certain you’ve been contacted by a scammer, don’t reply to the text message. Replying lets scammers know they have an active phone number and could leave you vulnerable to future attacks. Instead, block the number and delete the message.
