I was scammed of £16k in new Whatsapp 職業 ruse: We 明らかにする／漏らす the 新規採用 scam that has arrived from the US...

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A woman has been left on the 瀬戸際 of 破産 after fraudsters tricked her into starting a 職業 online which left her thousands of 続けざまに猛撃するs out of pocket.

Over the course of five days, Alice - who asked for her 指名する to be changed - was scammed into 手渡すing over £16,500 to scammers, and has been left penniless after hoping to make a bit of extra cash.

She has spent the last few months trying to recoup the 基金s, but with little success, and she 恐れるs the very same fraudsters are continuing to dupe people.

Duped: Alice thought she was starting a new part-time 職業 but lost £16,500 to scammers?

In March, Alice's mother, who lives abroad, had three heart attacks in the space of 48 hours.

Alice, who 恐れるd she might lose another parent just a few years after losing her father, sent money home.

'I sent her the money and I was 肉親，親類d of struggling, so I looked for a part-time 職業 to do と一緒に my 十分な-time 職業. I was updating CVs and putting them on 職業 websites.'

She was 接触するd by Mandy who （人命などを）奪う，主張するd to be from Robert Half 新規採用 機関 on Whatsapp and Alice did the 決まりきった仕事 checks to see if it was 合法的.

Robert Half is one of the biggest 新規採用 機関s in the UK, which she thought meant the 職業 was 合法的.?

She was passed の上に an app 開発 company called Indiespring, another 合法的 company which counts Nokia and 主要道路s England as （弁護士の）依頼人s.

Both companies have 問題／発行するd 警告s that scammers are using their 指名するs fraudulently.??

Lucy the scammer

Alice was put in touch with someone called Lucy, who （人命などを）奪う，主張するd to work at Indiespring, 経由で Whatsapp and was 始める，決める up to work on the company's 壇・綱領・公約.

Alice still wasn't 納得させるd at this point, though.

'I was やめる 懐疑的な but Lucy 納得させるd me to do it. She sent me a 職業 description, the company's 演説（する）／住所, working hours.'

Once Alice agreed to start work, she was guided through a practice run. She was shown 30 仕事s and for each one 完全にするd, money would be put into her balance which she could then 身を引く from.

'I didn't have to put any money in at that point… I think people would be very 懐疑的な. Lucy said I could practice on her account.'

Alice continued to 完全にする the 仕事s and saw her balance going up every time. She was able to 身を引く £106 which went into her bank account.

'I thought it was good but I didn't want to do anymore. Lucy 納得させるd me to do three more 仕事s to make more money.'

At this point, Alice's balance went into 消極的な and she was told she'd need to 追加する more money in before she could 身を引く again. She was told she'd need to 追加する money through the cryptocurrency USDT.

'You're supposed to 接触する 顧客 service and they give you a crypto 演説（する）／住所.?

'The 仕事s then show on the 壇・綱領・公約. But every time I did the 仕事s, my balance kept going 消極的な. So I kept on 追加するing more money…'

'She was 干渉 in my life'

Over the course of five days, Lucy and other '従業員s' would 接触する Alice encouraging her to do more 仕事s and make more money.

'Lucy said she'd 最高の，を越す up on my に代わって. I thought why would she 危険 her money if it's a scam? She'd help and then go 冷淡な. I'd 疑問 it and then she'd help me again.'

At this point, Lucy was also trying to 納得させる Alice to develop her own members because she was '収入 負担s of money'.

Alice said she was '干渉' in her life: 'She asked if I was 選び出す／独身 or if I had kids.?

'She sent me a ビデオ of her in a Bentley or Rolls Royce, but I didn't see her 直面する in the ビデオ. She'd send me pictures of her going to the gym. You could see her shoes and 脚s. I don't know how she did it.'

She even told Alice that they could 会合，会う up in London if they were ever there at the same time.

> Read how a tenant was scammed out of £3,500 for renting a flat on Facebook

'I was left with no money'

Alice went into a 消極的な balance of around £4,000 and at that point, had ploughed about £16,000 in the 壇・綱領・公約's balance.?

She started to worry, telling Lucy she could not 追加する any more money.

'I was already maxed out - I'd borrowed from friends and family, maxed out my credit cards.

'I usually get paid on the 25th and put my whole month's salary in. I had nothing left for the month.'

Alice said her balance went into 消極的な a few times and 'with each 最高の，を越す up, I got more and more stuck and desperate.?

'Each time they'd change their 声明 at the point of 撤退, needing more and more money to 最高の，を越す up to 身を引く, or 説 my account needs 昇格ing.

'I was 追加するd into a Whatsapp group where everyone was 株ing how much they'd been able to earn and how they got stuck 最初 too, but it's profitable.'

Alice still couldn't 接近 the 基金s and started to twig that she had been scammed.

'By the end, I was left with no money and I 辞退するd to 最高の，を越す up and asked to let me 身を引く without 支払う／賃金ing anymore. That's when everything [descended into] 大混乱.'

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Alice 脅すd to 接触する the company and she was told the company 'wouldn't recognise the department' and 脅すd to 凍結する her account as she'd be 'breaking the confidentiality 協定.'

結局 she was 封鎖するd and she could not 身を引く the 基金s.?

Alice 接触するd the 会議 who advised she try to find a no 勝利，勝つ no 料金 lawyer to take on the 事例／患者.?

They raised her 事例／患者 with both of her banks - Revolut and Wise - whose 手渡すs were tied because Alice had 認可するd the 支払い（額）s, and she had used, 大部分は untraceable, cryptocurrency.

This Is Money 接触するd both banks to ask what more could have been done and if there was any 範囲 for a refund.

A 広報担当者 for Revolut said:?'We are very sorry to hear about [Alice's] 事例／患者, or any instance where our 顧客s are 的d by ruthless and 高度に sophisticated 犯罪のs.

'Revolut 警告するd [Alice] on 多重の occasions about the 怪しげな 処理／取引s she was 試みる／企てるing to authorise.'?

A spokesperson for Wise said: 'We are sorry that Alice has fallen 犠牲者 to such an unpleasant and exploitative scam. Scammers will often 提起する／ポーズをとる as 新規採用 スパイ／執行官s and create 状況／情勢s where they can 的 and 偉業／利用する people to 需要・要求する 料金s, whether that be for training 料金s, 合法的な costs or more (a)手の込んだ／(v)詳述する 計画／陰謀s like this.

'At Wise, we are 投資するd in the continual fight against scams. This 範囲s from new 科学（工学）技術, such as AI modelling, to features, such as 警告s to 顧客s when we 位置／汚点／見つけ出す that they might be at 危険 of a scam.'?

More scammers out there… be 警告するd

Alice's world has been turned upside 負かす／撃墜する by what she thought would make her some extra cash.?

'To be honest, I'm in the middle of 破産. I'm in an IVA [individual voluntary 協定] and I can't afford to 支払う／賃金 for anything.?

'Any money I had, I maxed out on everything. Even if I tried to make 最小限 支払い（額）s, my 後継の salary is £2,000 and my 去っていく／社交的なs would be £3,000. I'm screwed for the next six years.

'I 港／避難所't talked to anyone about my 財政上の 問題／発行するs. It's got to the point where I feel like I'm havi ng a mental 決裂／故障. I can't 非難する anyone for it but myself.'

Unfortunately, the scamming and spamming hasn't stopped.?

Alice still receives messages from different companies using the same playbook.

She is messaged by a recruiter who puts her in touch with a company who 約束s to give her a 職業.?

She has often interacted with these scammers: 'I 手配中の，お尋ね者 to see what they were going to do. I knew I wasn't going to 落ちる for it again. They just rinse and repeat.'

This Is Money 接触するd Robert Half and Indiespring to ask if they were aware their 指名するs had been used in an (a)手の込んだ／(v)詳述する scam.

A 広報担当者 for Robert Half said: 'We are aware of fraudulent actors impersonating 新規採用 顧問s with 偽の online profiles on social 網状組織ing 場所／位置s.?

'We 供給する （警察などへの）密告，告訴（状） to recognise scams to the extent that we can, and proactively draw attention to the 危険 of 職業 地位，任命するing 詐欺 through 警報s and FAQs on our website. Importantly, we want to 強調 that no Robert Half professional will ever request 支払い（額） of any 肉親，親類d from a 候補者.'?

Indiespring said: 'It's so sad for those who have been 犠牲者s of the scam; they were sophisticated in their use of our branding.?

'We have 報告（する）／憶測d the scammers and the look-alike websites to the 関連した 団体／死体s and tried to advise those who have 接触するd us as best we can.'?

> Read how a grandmother was duped into 手渡すing £117,000 to crypto scammers?

There is nothing to 示唆する the scammers have been caught. Alice 報告（する）／憶測d the scam to 活動／戦闘 詐欺, which said it was 'not possible to identify a line of enquiry'.?

A 広報担当者 said: 'It was 査定する／（税金などを）課すd by the 国家の 詐欺 知能 Bureau (NFIB) at the City of London Police but has not been passed to a police 軍隊 for 調査 at this time.

'With more than 850,000 報告（する）／憶測s coming into the NFIB each year, not all 事例／患者s can be passed on for その上の 調査.?

'報告（する）／憶測s are 査定する／（税金などを）課すd against a number of 基準 which 含む the vulnerability of the 犠牲者.?

'However, the 報告（する）／憶測s most likely to 現在の an investigative 適切な時期 for 地元の police 軍隊s, those where a 罪，犯罪 is 現在進行中の and those that 現在の the greatest 脅し and 害（を与える） to the 犠牲者 or 犠牲者s 関心d, are the ones that are prioritised.'

Alice hopes her story will help save others, 特に those looking to make some extra money, from 落ちるing for a scam that could leave them thousands of 続けざまに猛撃するs out of pocket.

Have you been the 犠牲者 of a 職業 scam? 接触する:?editor@thisismoney.co.uk??