If You Or Someone You Know Got Scammed (Or Almost Scammed), We Want To Hear Your Story

Online or over the phone...scammers are more sophisticated than ever.

An article in the Cut entitled “The Day I Put $50,000 in a Shoe Box and Handed It to a Stranger” has started a lot of discussion about how big a problem scammers are. Whether they’re reaching out via the phone or online, these scammers are increasingly sophisticated and convincing.

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The author of the Cut piece (a personal finance columnist, no less!) was convinced by a cold caller claiming to be a CIA agent that she needed to give him money or risk her accounts getting frozen because someone was trying to steal her identity.

So what we want to know today is your experiences with scammers — and if you or a loved one has fallen (or almost fallen) for one.

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Perhaps you got a call or online message from someone who knew details about you that convinced you (or at least made you wonder) if it was legit. Maybe you sent them money, maybe you didn’t, but it was disturbing either way.

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Maybe one of your relatives — like a parent or grandparent — sent money to a scammer who manipulated them by saying someone they cared about was in trouble. Or maybe they fell for the classic scam where they were promised riches if they sent money to someone…a modern-day version of the old Nigerian prince email scam.

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Sometimes, these scams are done over social media like Facebook that make them seem legit. One common one is where scammers get money out of people by claiming there is a family in need…a family that often doesn’t exist, doesn’t know their likeness is being used, or is in on the scheme themselves. Scary stuff!

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Whatever your experience is with scammers, we want to hear your story. Share it in the comments below or via this anonymous form and it could be featured in a future BuzzFeed Community post.