Just as the title states, I was the victim of an employment scam. It took place over a month and I am still paying for it (literally).
I feel so incredibly stupid about what happened. I am so ashamed of myself. The only thing I can do now is tell my story in hopes that other people don’t fall prey to these kinds of scams.
Finding the “job”
Working from home was and is something that I prefer to do. This is mainly because I do not like having co-workers. I also have sensory and anxiety issues that make things difficult for me.
I saw a job posting by a man named “Robert Smith” for a virtual assistant position. It looked like I had the job requirements for it, so I decided to apply (through indeed).
Within a couple days, the guy emailed me back about the application. He then had me click a link to fill out a longer application form.
The day after filling out the form, he wanted to talk to me on a business chat site. This site is called Trillion. There is a free and monthly payment version.
He had me download the free version so I could chat with him about the “job.” It all seemed legitimate to me at the time so I took the opportunity when he offered it.
About 30 minutes after accepting the offer, he sent me an employment contract. It was a very long. It still didn’t seem scam-like because everything was so detailed and professional sounding.
I signed the contract and was to begin working the next week.
The tasks
I wanted to make a list of the tasks I was instructed to do. You will probably notice right away how much of a scam this “job” was. It is too bad I didn’t see it.
Here are the tasks:
1. Download bank apps on my phone: Bitcoin, Venmo, Cashapp
2. Organize rent payments on Excel
3. Enter “his” bank account information into my bank account
4. Set someone as a “friend” on my PayPal account
5. Transfer money through my account (withdraw money from his account into mine and then transfer it to another account).
6. Buy bitcoins with “his” money and send them to different accounts
7. Withdraw money from “his” account in PayPal and send them to the “friend” on my account
8. Withdraw money from “his” account to send to another account in Venmo
What kind of scam this was
This is kind of scam is called money laundering. I had no idea what I was doing and I feel so dumb!
I literally did not think what I was doing was wrong for a while. When I did know, it was too late. I should have researched more about what virtual assistants do so I knew the scams that were out there.
I am just a complete idiot. If I had known this scammer was taking money from an elderly man, I would have never accepted the job!
This all happened in less than a month, but the damage will be long-lasting for me.
My financial aftermath
I have lost a total of $10,300. My parents helped me out with part of it because it needed to be paid off right away. I will still have to pay them back though.
This means that when we get our taxes back, we will have to give it all to my parents. We might not get enough back to cover what they paid so that means we must dip into our savings for the rest.
I also still have a negative balance on my PayPal account (which has been permanently closed by them) that needs to be paid back. My mother and an investigator are helping me try and get the balance dropped.
From the calculations we have done, paying the negative PayPal balance back means that the “friend” that I mistakenly put on my account will be up double the amount that they need back. I really hope that this matter is resolved in my favor.
The non-financial aftermath
The whole situation has messed with my mind. This in turn has messed with my body.
We were already doing bad enough as it is with money (I had to close my daycare business due to stress and my son’s special needs). To add in this financial loss means that we are set back even more.
I worry all the time about whether we will be able to get our heads out of the water. This worrying adds to the stomach problems I have and makes them even more severe.
I am grateful that my parents have been helping me through all of this though. Without them, things would be even worse. I also am thankful that my bank still accepts me as a customer due to my cooperation with them into this matter.
Currently, I am in the process of getting licensed again to provide daycare in my home. This time around I am not so sure that I will be able to find clients. I have advertised that my business will be opening soon and I have gotten no calls so far.
I am feeling very defeated. There is a very good chance that doing daycare again will not pan out. If that is the case, I have no idea what I will do to make the money we so desperately need.
We can’t afford to send our son off to a home daycare just for me to work outside of the house.
This totally sucks. I am so mad at myself. It is really hitting me hard right now. Other days I have been more optimistic.
Steps to take if this happens to you
If you are the victim of the scam, here is a list of things you should do:
1. Try not to feel stupid: I am not practicing what I preach here but I wanted to put it in the list anyways. From what I read, many people (even smart ones) can fall victims to scams.
2. Cooperate with the bank: This is really important. Doing this might save you from the bank not wanting to deal with you as a customer anymore.
3. Keep a record of all that went on in the scam- This is what I did. It really came in handy. Doing this made me figure out that one of the people that I was required to pay back (one that the scammer was taking money from) was actually getting more back from me than what was necessary. This meant that I was awarded some of the money back (by their bank) that I had to pay. This reduced my loss a bit.
4. File a police report
5. Report the scam to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission)
Tough lesson learned
These past few months have been rough for me. I really should have known right off the bat that the job was a scam due to how quickly I was hired.
I have had no administrative assistant experience, so I am not a good choice for a virtual assistant position. In fact, I do not see how anyone can get a legitimate virtual assistant position without a lot of experience (despite what the people selling classes on it say).
All I can do now is keep trying to move forward in life somehow.
Thanks for reading!
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