Woman in Her 70s Buys 130 Don of Gold With Lifetime Savings; Taxi Driver's Quick Thinking Foils Voice Phishing Scam

Taxi Driver Suspects Something Is Wrong
Quick Report Prevents Elderly Woman from Falling Victim to Voice Phishing
Police Praise Taxi Driver's Alertness in Saving Lifetime Savings

A woman in her 70s, who nearly lost all the money she had saved over her lifetime after being deceived by a voice phishing scammer impersonating a Financial Supervisory Service official, was saved from falling victim thanks to the quick thinking of a taxi driver.

According to Gwangju Bukbu Police Station on September 4, Ms. A (75), who lives in a convent in Yeonggwang County, Jeollanam-do, received a call the previous day from an unknown number. A man on the other end of the line, claiming to be an official from the Financial Supervisory Service, told her, "Your current bank account is involved in a crime," and instructed her to withdraw all her money and convert it into gold. This is a common tactic used by voice phishing organizations impersonating the Financial Supervisory Service.

Startled, Ms. A followed the instructions and immediately withdrew her entire savings of 100 million won from a financial institution in Yeonggwang. She then purchased 130 don (about 488 grams) of gold at a nearby gold shop, wrapped it in a cloth, and got into a taxi to head to a motel in Sinan-dong, Buk-gu, Gwangju, as directed by the voice phishing scammer.

Even in the taxi, Ms. A remained on the phone with the scammer. Although she mentioned her "daughter" several times, the voice on the other end was that of a middle-aged man speaking harshly. The taxi driver, finding this suspicious, reported a possible crime to the police, saying, "She says she's talking to her daughter, but it doesn't sound like her."

Officers from the Usan Police Box were immediately dispatched to the motel, where they guided Ms. A to the police station and spent about an hour persuading her. Ms. A insisted, "I have to stay at the motel until I get further instructions," denying it was a voice phishing scam. However, thanks to the police's persistent explanation that this was a typical criminal scheme, she was saved from harm. The police then called a taxi to return Ms. A to her convent residence and received confirmation from the taxi driver that she had arrived safely.

Han Yongbok, head of the Usan Police Box at Gwangju Bukbu Police Station, stated, "Many people do not realize they are being scammed even after long conversations with the criminals and often do not trust the police. Ms. A, deceived by the scammer, could have ended up in 'self-confinement,' staying at the motel until further instructions." The police plan to present a letter of appreciation to the taxi driver who quickly reported the suspected crime.