Ont. woman warns others after losing more than $17,000 to 'bank investigator' scam

An Ontario woman who worked at the Bank of Montreal (BMO) for decades is warning others to be aware of the “bank investigator” scam after she lost more than $17,000.

“They called me and said, ‘This is BMO security department’ and they knew my name,” Scarborough resident Angela Feng told CTV News Toronto.

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Feng said it was last April when she got the call from a person who claimed there was suspicious activity on her account. He said he needed her to confirm her bank card number, which she gave to him, Fend said.

“He said there were suspicious transactions going through and they were going to stop it,” Feng explained.

However, once she gave him the bank card number within the hour there were three e-transfers for smaller amounts and one wire transfer of $14,000.

In total, Feng said, she had $17,382 taken from her account.

Feng said after she got the call she immediately went to her bank branch and spent about three hours with bank staff informing them of what happened.

BMO refused to refund the money back to Feng’s account because they said she had failed to protect her banking information and gave the scammers a passcode, she said.

A BMO spokesperson told CTV News Toronto in a statement: “This is an unfortunate situation, and we have been in touch with our customer to provide an update on our review.”

“When a customer requests a One-time Passcode (OTP), it is accompanied by the following disclosure: ‘Warning: This Code grants access to your accounts. Calls to request it may be a scam. If called, hang up and call the # on BMO card,’” the bank said.

Feng was a BMO employee for 40 years and was hopeful her money would be returned. She took her case to the Ombudsman for Banking Services (OBSI), but in a review of her case OBSI sided with BMO and said she did not deserve compensation because she compromised her bank account.

The bank investigator scam has also taken place in Ottawa where there are more victims.

“I don't think they are being fair with me, I worked for the bank for 40 years," Feng said.

Claudiu Popa is a cyber security expert and said banks have a tarnished reputation because of the way they deal with customers who have been victims of scams.

“What's clear to me is there is a need for reform in the way banks are dealing with these different types of scams," Popa said.

Popa also said he feels banks should do more to protect their clients.

“Customers should have a right to automatic reimbursement if they report the fraud on the same day," he said.

Feng said she went to her branch within one hour of getting the scam call and still feels she deserves her money back. Feng said her husband has serious health issues and she needs the money to look after him.

“I'm not giving up because it's too much money. I don't want to lie down and play dead. I want them to give me my money back,” said Feng.

Popa said you should be suspicious of any phone call if the person says they're with your bank, the police or the tax department. Never give out your personal information, hang up and call back at a number you find yourself.