A new scam is claiming victims all over the country and this time its hitting users of the popular money transfer app, Cash App.
Mildrea Shorter was trying to send money to her son who is in the Navy. When the transaction did not go though, she wanted answers and tried to call the company.
That’s where the trouble began for the Columbus, Ga. woman. She googled the apparent phone number for Cash App and wanted to know what was going on.
“A representative answered the phone, saying, ‘thank you for contacting Square cash App,’” she said to WTVM. “I told them what happened. They then proceeded to say, ok, let’s validate who you are. They asked me for my name, and telephone number.”.
It turned out that this number, as are all numbers that claim to be Cash App customer service, was a fake. Cash App says they do not do customer service over the phone but it’s over email instead.
“So, the time they had me on hold, they wiped my account, with $4,668 in 22 minutes,” she said.
She filed a police report with the Columbus Police Financial Crimes unit which then issued a ‘fraud alert.’ Their investigations found numerous fake phone numbers claiming to be a part of the Cash App.
“If you are using Paypal Cash App or square, make sure your bank account is not attached. Make sure it’s your credit card. It is easier to dispute,” Mallory Bergara, a Business Relations Specialist with the Better Business Bureau, said.
A Cash App statement says they are aware of the scams and warned that the company only handles customer service issues electronically.
“We are always working to protect our customers, which includes educating them about phishing scams,” the statement said. “We remind customers that currently the Cash App team generally communicates via email and the Cash App team will never solicit a customer’s PIN or sign in code outside of the app.”
Shorter has not gotten any of her money returned from either her bank or Cash App.