Savannah Jackson, a BNZ customer from Queenstown, New Zealand, lost $42,000 in an SMS scam
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A broken businesswoman recalls how $42,000 was wiped from her bank account moments after she clicked a link in a text message sent by the scammers.
Canadian expat Savannah Jackson from Queenstown, New Zealand, insists she is generally “very aware” and wary of text messages from potential scammers.
But on June 22, she was busy at work when she received an SMS alert from her bank BNZ that said “Just to confirm that a new device has been added to your account”.
Despite being the only person with access to the account, Ms. Jackson clicked the link and immediately realized she had made a costly mistake.
She called the bank, and while she was waiting, she received a call from the BNZ fraud department who had noticed the suspicious activity.
The bank pointed out the transaction as a possible scam after speaking to Mrs. Jackson, but unfortunately it was too late by then.
Savannah Jackson made the costly mistake of clicking a link in a text message
Within minutes, BNZ had authorized the transfer of the entire amount from Ms. Jackson’s business account to the third-party company Wise, previously known as Transfer Wise.
“It was $42,000. All the money for GST, paying my employees, my creditors, all gone in a matter of minutes, Ms. Jackson told Stuff.
The property manager is ashamed that he fell for the scam and hopes others can learn from his mistake by sharing his story.
“I am usually very knowledgeable about these things, but I was busy at work and I clicked on the link, and it went to the official BNZ Bank page,” said Ms. Jackson.
“I immediately knew I had made a mistake.
I can’t believe I fell in love with him. I self-indulged and kicked myself.
Twelve days later, Ms. Jackson is desperately fighting to get her money back and has contacted BNZ for daily updates on the status of the investigation.
A businesswoman is fighting for compensation for fraudulently transferred funds
BNZ has issued a warning to all customers about the text scam in which Ms. Jackson fell in love
She feels abandoned by the bank and feels her work is financially threatened.
“I don’t understand how a big bank like BNZ and their fraud department can’t get in touch with a big international money transfer company,” she told the newspaper.
BNZ confirmed to Stuff that…
“Reader. Travel maven. Student. Passionate tv junkie. Internet ninja. Twitter advocate. Web nerd. Bacon buff.”