Hackers impersonate their victims’ family members on Facebook

Imagine getting a Facebook message from a family member, it may look legitimate, but a hacker is behind it all.

How the scam works

A new Facebook Messenger scam is targeting users by researching their victims’ family members and subsequently making identical accounts to impersonate them.

The idea is to convince their victims to send them personal or financial information they can use to sell to other hackers; that’s the scam.

“It was so scary, I had no idea it wasn’t my sister,” said Michelle Barela, a victim of this scam.

The scam tends to be successful when people don’t have strict privacy settings, which allows virtually anyone to message an account.

Meet Michelle

As Michelle Barela was scrolling through Facebook she got exciting news.

“My sister announced she’s moving to Colorado,” Barela said. “She’s finally sold it.”

Minutes later, Barela received a Facebook message from a profile impersonating her sister, Kimberley.

“It was totally legit… with her name, her face, and even her granddaughter,” she said.

The scammer running the account clearly researched the family and used convincing language to get Barela to send over her information.

“I gave them my drivers license,” Barela said. “They made it sound like she needed it for a grant.”

Det. Jon Price with the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office explains it’s becoming more common for scammers to research their victims.

“Consumers in this day in age have to remain vigilant,” said Price.

Report a scam

If you have a scam you’d like us to investigate, email Stephanie.Sierra@KRDO.com