Payday Loan Scam Hitting Consumers
A payday loan scam is hitting some consumers who applied for a loan online.
Eric and Suzanne Conley said a payday loan was their only option to get the bills paid and their kids fed.
“You do it because you’re broke, it’s a last resort,” said Suzanne.
She went to a few payday loan sites, and filled out applications. For most sites, applicants must give all their personal information, including social security and bank account numbers, to find out if they qualify. Many payday loan sites then provide that information to multiple lenders.
The Conleys got their loan, but also something they didn’t bargain for– a call saying they were facing criminal charges for a loan they never repaid.
“The individuals that called were identifying themselves as law enforcement officers,” said Eric.
The callers said the Conleys owed $500, but it wasn’t from the same loan company they had borrowed from. The callers had all the information from the Conleys’ loan application.
“Social security number, routing number, checking account number,” said Suzanne. “When you apply, you put down references, they knew those.”
The callers threatened to take the Conleys to court on criminal charges, where their fees would add up to $7,000.
The couple immediately closed their bank account. Target 13 was contacted by someone else who got the same kind of calls and threats. That man actually had money withdrawn from his account.
The Conleys think hackers got a hold of their information, but because they had filled out applications on several sites that then sent their information to other lender sites, it’s impossible to know how or where it happened.
“It’s amazing what these scam artists can get,” said Blair Reeves, with the Better Business Bureau of Southern Colorado.
Reeves said these kind of phone scams are all too common.
“They have a heavy accent, the person who’s calling, usually these calls originate overseas,” said Reeves. “They threaten the person’s credit will be ruined, or even, in some cases, that they’re going to send the police to their homes and they’ll be arrested for it.”
If you get a call, don’t give out any personal information or try to negotiate with the callers. Alert the Federal Trade Commission about the scam.
