Variation of 'grandparent scam' targets businesses

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Most people have heard of the Grandparent Scam, where scammers contact elderly people and pretend to be a loved one – usually a grandchild – in distress and needing money in a hurry. Following instructions, victims wire money to the scammers and then discover later their loved ones are fine and were never in any danger. Now, a variation of this scam is targeting businesses.

Here’s how the scam works: a business receives a call from a restricted phone number. The caller claims they’re a detective with the local police department and one of the company’s employees is in the hospital after being involved in a DUI accident and needs bail money. Sometimes when the business owner has asked which employee was in the accident, callers have stated, ‘it’s someone you’d least expect,’ or a similar statement meant to bait the business into providing a guess.

If the business provides the name of an employee, the scammer confirms that is the person who’s in trouble and to protect that person’s good name, bail money needs to be issued immediately through a wire transfer service.

This scam can target practically any business. The best defense against falling victim to it is to train all of your employees to be vigilant and teach them how to identify red flags. If your business receives a call like this, the BBB advises that you:

Don’t fill in the blanks for unknown callers. Ask specific questions that have answers only you or someone familiar with your employee should know.

Don’t allow yourself to be pressured. Do whatever is necessary to confirm your employee’s whereabouts.

Never wire money. Law enforcement agencies don’t accept bail via a wire transfer service and detectives will never solicit bail money from businesses or individuals. If a caller asks you for your bank account number or urges you to wire money for any reason, it’s likely a scam. Scammers prefer wire transfers because they’re fast and funds can be picked up easily just about anywhere.

Tags: news, updates, business, bbb, scam