A 68-year-old Okatie resident reported to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office she believed she was the victim of fraud.
The woman said she received an email, from who she believed to be Norton Security, stating she had been fraudulently charged $400. The email directed her to call them immediately and it provided a phone number. Upon calling the provided number, the woman spoke with a man by the name of “Paul Seaver”. She said he persuaded her to purchase various gift cards to prove her identity. The woman agreed to purchase the gift cards out of fear her bank accounts were hacked and believed that “Seaver” could help her.
“Seaver” gave the woman a secret phrase so when she contacted him again, they would trust one another. The phrase went as follows: “Seaver” would ask, “What is your favorite holiday destination?” The woman would then respond with, “Honolulu”.
The woman purchased Apple and Google Play gift cards and then provided “Seaver” with the card numbers on each of the gift cards. She never spoke to “Seaver” again and believes he gained remote access to her desktop computer in addition to the gift card information.
In total, the woman was defrauded out of $3,000.
Should you believe you’ve been a victim of a scam, please report it to your local law enforcement agency.
