$1,600 scam targets local business

NAPLES, Fla. – A local business owner is warning others after a scammer tried to take hundreds from him.

Jack Anderson has been in the clock business for more than five decades. For 14 of those years, he has owned Clockmaster of Naples. A Scottish immigrant, Anderson is a smart business man who has worked hard for his money. Recently, he almost lost $1,600 because of one phone call.

“The guy said that I had taken out a protection thing on my computer a couple of years back and now they were wanting to give me a refund. I thought that was strange,” said Anderson. “They said the reason was that they were going out of business and that in good faith, everybody that had paid the money, they were paying them back again.”

Anderson said the caller claimed Anderson would be getting a $249 refund for the computer protection he had purchased. He then told Anderson to look at his bank account online because they were transferring money to his account.

“I could see the normal amount that was in there, and then all of a sudden the screen changed with an extra $2,000 in. But the actual screen had changed and everything was slightly different, slightly bigger. I knew they had done something.”

Anderson said the caller told him to go buy a money card at Walmart and send back the difference from what was deposited into his bank and the refund. The caller said the card should be sent to a ‘John Clark’ in India and he gave Anderson a number and address. That was when Anderson knew the call was not legitimate. He immediately called his bank and put a freeze on his account.

Anderson said he wants other people to be alert, and he has a little advice.

“If anything comes up like that, hang up on them immediately. Switch off your computer right away and leave it off the rest of the day.”

Remember, a legitimate business will never deposit more than what is owed to you, and they will never ask you to send a money card or wire money. Make sure you always check with your bank before believing a call like this, and never give out your personal information to someone over the phone that you do not know.