TD Bank customer Binh Tran said a phone number that appeared to match the bank's official website was enough to convince her that a terrifying fraud call was legitimate.
By the time she realized something was wrong, nearly $10,000 was gone, the CBC reported.
Here's what to know
A March phone call led Tran, of Prince Edward Island, Canada, to lose $9,800.
Tran said the caller, who claimed to be from the bank's fraud prevention team, told her to take out her money "for safety," remain on the line while doing so, and then put the cash into a bitcoin machine as a supposed form of verification.
What persuaded Tran to keep going was the number on her screen.
While she admitted she had doubts, an online search showed that it matched TD Bank's official listing. Call spoofing allows criminals to make calls appear to come from a trusted institution.
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After the transaction, TD Bank told Tran it would not reimburse her, a response she felt was as upsetting as the scam itself.
"I think that the TD Bank, they didn't do anything for investigation," she told the broadcaster.
In a statement cited by CBC, TD Bank declined to discuss her case but said it understands it can be "distressing" to fall victim to fraud and that it takes these reports "very seriously."
More background
A central issue in the dispute is a form Tran signed while withdrawing the cash.
The document indicated that the bank had "warned [her] that fraudsters may ask their victims to purchase gift cards or bitcoin" and that the withdrawal was made of the customer's "own free will, without any coercion or pressure from a third party."
Tran also contacted police and filed a report, though she is unsure how that investigation is progressing.
She now plans to challenge TD Bank's decision through the federal banking ombudsman.
What can be done?
TD Bank affirmed that it "will never ask" customers to help with an investigation or provide passwords or one-time security codes sent by text or email.
The bank also warned customers not to trust unsolicited calls or assume a displayed phone number is genuine.
"I just work at a Superstore at [a] part-time job, so this is a huge amount. This is my retirement nest, so I cannot lose that amount," Tran admitted.
Where can I learn more?
In addition to garden-variety banking scams, cryptocurrency has emerged as a driver of fraudulent activity. The articles below get into how scammers use crypto to drain accounts, along with economists' warnings about the potential for fraud or sudden value collapse.
• In the UK, scammers took over a woman's devices and drained £250,000 via a crypto ad.
• Former SEC official Stanley Fischer warned crypto can look great before it suddenly collapses.
• Economist Paul Krugman argued nobody is using crypto for anything legitimate.
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