Revealed: The disturbingly sophisticated Facebook scam that robbed elderly Australian couple out of $56,000 by hijacking one of their friends' identities
- Helen, 71, from West Australia received a Facebook message from a 'friend'
- It was actually scammer posing as her friend by creating a fake Facebook profile
- The friend told Helen to enter a Facebook lottery as she could win $100,000
- The lottery told her she had won but continuously asked for money off Helen
- She eventually gave the scammers $56,000 and won't get the money back
A grandmother and her husband were conned out of $56,000 after being scammed on Facebook.
Helen, 71, from West Australia, replied to a message she thought was from her friend Robyn telling her to enter a Facebook lottery.
But the message as actually from sophisticated scammers who had stolen the friend's name and picture to create a fake profile.
The con-artist told Helen she had won $100,000 and all she would need to do is pay $8,000 for delivery from the US.
Over the next two weeks, Helen would pay the scammers tens of thousands of dollars and it is unlikely she will ever get her money back.
Helen, 71, from West Australia, replied to a message she thought was from her friend Robyn telling her to enter a Facebook lottery
'My friend, Robyn, texted me and said she just got a $52,000 grant from this Facebook lottery. ''Do you want to apply for it?'' And she sent me a link,' Helen told 7News.
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She then received a message about the scam.
'The International Monetary Fund Commission has put in place a program to help people financially with money all over the world for hearing, disable, old, retired, semi-retired, sick, low-income earners,' it read.
After Helen was told she won the lottery and paid for delivery, she continued to receive messages asking for more money to cover costs such as taxes, postage and changing delivery companies.
The lottery told Helen she had won $100,000 and all she would need to do is pay $8,000 for delivery from the US (pictured the fake Robyn Facebook profile)
She reached out to the fake Robyn account to ask if this jackpot was legitimate and the scammers posing as her friend reassured her that it was.
Helen continued to transfer money but eventually realised it was a scam but only after she sent them $56,000.
'Just check everything before you go into anything like this. It was so real,' Helen said.
'I want to let people know how easy it is to get scammed and certainly don't go for a Facebook lottery.'
Helen's husband, 74, has been off work for three months.
He has had a shoulder replacement which has forced the couple to redraw money from their mortgage.
According to Scamwatch, over $58m has been lost to scams in 2019.
There have been a total of 86,872 scams reported to the watchdog and 4,000 of these were about lottery scams.
Over the next two weeks, Helen would pay the scammers tens of thousands of dollars and it is unlikely she will ever get her money back (stock photo)
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