One routine request

Virginia, 82, from Concord, Massachusetts, asked Siri to call American Express. The number Siri produced was bogus, and the person who answered was a scammer.

It escalated to her bank

The call drifted from her credit card to her Bank of America account, where a supposed security expert took over the conversation.

A thousand became a hundred thousand

She was told she had a $1,000 credit coming. Zeros kept appearing until the figure hit $100,000, and the man said he could not fix it.

“when zeros started being added to the $1000.00 credit I was supposed to get”

She hung up in time

The jump to six figures broke the spell. Virginia ended the call and froze her Bank of America account before any money moved.

Why she wrote in

Virginia contacted CyberGuy so other people would know how fast a call you placed yourself can turn against you.

“I never expected that a number that Siri provided would lead to trouble.”

Two scams stacked together

First a fake customer service number to get her on the phone. Then a refund and overpayment story to get real money sent back.

Nobody knows how the number got there

Apple says business details can appear across Maps and Siri. Apple did not respond to a request for comment, and Virginia's account cannot explain how this bad number surfaced.

Calling first lowers your guard

She had not picked up a cold call. She asked her own phone to dial, which handed the person on the other end instant credibility.

The BBB saw this coming

The Better Business Bureau has documented fake support numbers surfacing through voice assistants, including Siri, with people convinced they reached the real company.

Search results do the same thing

CyberGuy has reported on a reader who searched Google for support, called a planted number, and lost control of his phone. Voice makes it worse because you never see the digits.

Banks do not ask you to move money

Bank of America warns that criminals pose as bank staff and invent urgent account problems. The real bank will never ask you to transfer money because fraud was found.

The $100,000 may never have existed

Scammers use remote-access tools, shuffled balances between your own accounts, or fake banking pages to make a deposit appear. The money you send back is always real.

Use the number on your card

The back of your physical card or the official banking app is the safest starting point. Skip numbers from search results, sponsored ads and voice assistants.

Hang up when the story shifts

A call to your credit card company should never require moving money through an unrelated bank. Complexity is the tell. End it and redial a verified number.

Never read out a one-time code

Banks use those codes to confirm your identity. Anyone asking you to say one aloud, even to cancel fraud, is stealing your account.

Do not install their software

Remote-access programs let a stranger watch you log in, move money and control what your screen shows. If someone asks, end the call.

Turn on alerts, lock the rest down

Set notifications for purchases, withdrawals, transfers and suspicious logins. Use a unique password and two-factor authentication on your bank account.

If you already gave access

Hang up, call your bank on a verified number, freeze the account, change exposed passwords, remove any remote software, and check for new payees or changed contact details.

Report it, then expect a sequel

File with your bank and ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and freeze your credit if your Social Security number was exposed. Criminals often return posing as recovery specialists.

This is not an age story

Scams work because people trust familiar devices and famous brands. Verify financial phone numbers the way you protect a password, every single time.

“That tiny convenience nearly opened the door to a six-figure loss.”