A woman on twitter said she has a security bank account, and will donate a small amount to my bank.
She thinks the transfer will engender a fee, possibly from my bank. This doesn’t sound legit. Is it?
What the hell is a security bank account and why does this stranger want to put money in your bank(account?)?
Red flags all over the place.
How did she contact you? Do you have a text, tweet or email you can copy/paste?
I found her on twitter. I have all her e mails. I expressed a need for financial help.
That phrase “security bank account” and speculating there might be a fee is sus as hell.
Forget it. She’s a scammer. If you want to get help from strangers, set up a GoFundMe.
I have a cashapp. She said the bank couldn’t send it there. I only gave her my routing number, which I give my employers to deposit my checks.
Call your bank and lock down your account NOW. Cut off all contact with that woman.
No legitimate bank will offer to give money to a random stranger on Twitter. In fact, saying you need financial help will be an instant refusal from a bank.
YOU ARE NOT DEALING WITH A BANK.
Ok. I told her not to contact me anymore. I dont know how to lock my account. Its the weekend. It does say I have no accounts that can be transferred.
You also (presumably) give your employer your SSN and home address. Would you give either of these to a random stranger on the internet?
No. I thought my routing number only lets people, employers, enter money.
It’s essentially bank branch and account number. Legit businesses also use it to create automatic monthly withdrawals - I assume with the right setup, a not-so-legit business can allow your account to “make a payment” to themselves. Not sure what safeguards the bank has, but yes talk to the bank ASAP.
(Do you have a debit card for the bank? Does it have a 24-hour help line printed on it? Try that.)
Call up the bank’s customer service number (on the back of your bank card if you have one). Tell them what happened what information you gave this person, they will tell you what if any action you should take and help you take those actions.
Beat you by 3 seconds. Good advice…
Thank you!
Cannot talk to any live customer service rep. My account says I cant transfer money.
The nine-digit routing number identifies the bank. You would need to also have the specific account number (I’ve seen anywhere from 5 to 14 digits) to do any sort of transfer. (I’ve worked in several financial call centers and have done things like take payments and set up EFT by phone for callers.)
I’m going to take some out by atm today so even If they try to, there won’t be much there. Of course its a Sunday so I can’t contact the bank. I do have account with planet fitness, who take out 10 a month, but I signed up for that legitimately. She said the bank had to wait til Monday and they’d e mail me.
I’ve used legitimate bank transfers for years and never paid any fee.
I agree this is a scam and you should contact your bank asap.
Nobody can take money out of your account simply by having a routing number. Checks still have both the routing number and account number prominently displayed at the bottom. It takes more than just those numbers for a withdrawal. Try taking an unsigned check to a bank and cashing it. “Oh, but I have the account and routing number! Give me all the money in the account!” :rolleyes:
There’s nothing to freak out about. You don’t need to close your accounts, call you bank or remove your money. Jeesuz. The advice to avoid further communication from that scammer is sound, though.
I think you CAN take money out of a bank with the information in the bottom of a check. A lot of people won’t use checks for this reason.
The bank should have a 24/7 fraud line, and that’s who I’d be trying to contact.