A caller who showed up as Wells Fargo got an Orlando woman to read out text codes. Her family lost more than $7,500, and a real bank would never ask for those codes.
An Orlando couple lost more than $7,500 after a phone call that looked like it came from Wells Fargo. The caller never asked for a password. He only asked Carmen Evans to read back the text codes that arrived on her phone.
The caller ID showed Wells Fargo. The man said he was "Michael" from the bank's fraud department and warned of questionable transactions. He mentioned Sam's Club and Walmart purchases that Carmen recognized. Then he cited a $3,000 transaction she had not made.
That mix of a trusted name and real details made the call feel genuine. Carmen said she did not even have to give her name. She was told codes would be texted to her and to repeat them. She did, believing she was helping protect her money.
Afterward, Carmen could not get into her banking accounts. She and her husband, William, went to a branch. William said an employee told them activity was happening in the accounts while they stood there.
The couple later learned money had been moved between their accounts and sent out through Cash App, using Carmen's linked Wells Fargo debit card. She said she made none of those transfers. The loss included about $3,000 in savings, plus her Social Security payment and paychecks from her part-time job.
The couple took out loans to cover bills and asked their children for help with rent and a car payment. Carmen disputed the transactions but has not recovered the money. She has deleted Cash App, and the couple is working to move their banking elsewhere.
Anyone with a bank account or a payment app could get this call. People who trust the name on their screen are the easiest targets, because caller ID can show a business name the caller has no right to use. The story does not say Wells Fargo's own systems were breached.
The American Bankers Association says banks will not call and ask for your one-time login code. Keep passwords and PINs private as well.
The alert box above lists the steps, from how to check a suspicious call to what to do if money is already gone. Acting fast matters, since the couple's accounts were being drained while they sat in the branch.
If a caller claiming to be your bank asks for a text code, hang up and call the number on the back of your card.
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