Nigel Gammon responded to a WhatsApp message pretending to be from his son who lives abroad using a temporary number which asked him to send his credit card details
Image: 9News)
A grandfather was left £24,000 out of pocket after a scammer pretended to be his son on WhatsApp.
Nigel Gammon, from Adelaide in Australia, regularly uses the encrypted messaging service to stay in contact with his son Jock, who lives in another country.
Two weeks ago Nigel received a message from an unfamiliar number claiming to be Jock, 9news reports.
The message looked and sounded legitimate but was a phishing scam that targets parents with adult children.
“Hi dad. My other phone crashed, but this is my temporary number…” the message read, according to 9news.
“I have a payment that must be paid today. Can you send me a picture from the front and back of your credit card…”
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Image:
9News)
However, after replying the 77-year-old was shocked to later learn that his son had not sent the original message.
“Anyone that gets a message from their son would feel the same way if you can help you do it,” Nigel said.
“I’m very upset about the whole incident, I think my son particularly feels guilty.
“It was one o’clock in the morning over there and I just didn’t want to ring him up, which I should have.”
Police have…