The messenger account of the mother of Alburquerque, Bohol Mayor Don Ritchie Buates was hacked and used by a g-cash scammer to solicit money from her contacts.
According to Mayor Buates, his mother’s account was compromised lately, when she received a message from an unknown number asking her to verify her g-cash account. She followed the instructions and entered her personal information, including her g-cash PIN, on a fake website.
The hacker then accessed her messenger account and sent messages to her friends and relatives, pretending to be her and asking for money transfers to her g-cash account. The hacker claimed that she needed the money for an emergency or a business opportunity.
Some of the victims of the scam were Mayor Buates’ relatives, who were about to transfer money to the hacker’s account. They realized that they were scammed when they called Mayor Buates’ mother and found out that she did not send those messages.
Mayor Buates said that he reported the incident to the police and the g-cash customer service, and advised his mother’s contacts to ignore any messages from her account until it is recovered. He also warned the public to be vigilant and not to fall for similar scams.