North Carolina woman loses $1,000 answering Facebook message from her ‘friend’

A Rocky Mount girl misplaced $1,000 to this rip-off and needs to verify it does not occur to others.

The rip-off begins with a message from considered one of your folks on Fb.

“I am like OK, I’ve not heard about any grant cash,” Nancy Belcher mentioned. Curiosity obtained Belcher’s consideration, so she responded to the message and was referred to a Fb web page that claims to offer free authorities grants.

Belcher was promised a $95,000 grant. She mentioned that might be simply what she wanted to “repay some payments and get myself again on monitor.”

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Belcher messaged backwards and forwards with the particular person and was instructed to purchase eBay present playing cards, scratch the numbers off the again after which ship footage of the cardboard numbers to get the grant cash.

Belcher adopted the directions, however she did not get any grant cash. As an alternative, the particular person saved asking for extra eBay present playing cards.

“I saved occurring and on till, lastly, I used to be like OK, sufficient is sufficient $1,000 is some huge cash to be gifting away.”

When she by no means obtained the grant cash, Belcher ultimately realized it was all a rip-off. The unique message who she thought was her pal, got here from somebody who hacked that account.

The robust actuality is that Belcher’s $1,000 is gone — when you give the numbers on present playing cards to somebody that cash is spent.

Belcher is talking up publicly to verify nobody else falls for this rip-off.

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“It might sound good, look good, it is not good. So my recommendation is to be very very cautious,” she mentioned.

Bear in mind the large crimson flag that one thing like it is a rip-off is if you happen to’re ever requested to pay in present playing cards. This rip-off not solely occurs on Fb but additionally by textual content messages and e mail.