Georgia woman loses $30,000 in task scam involving PayPal, wire transfers, and fake business documents

Summary

A Georgia woman lost nearly $30,000 in a "task scam" after responding to a text offering remote job opportunities. The scam began when she was promised part-time work checking merchants' accounts and was initially paid for training. Scammers then asked her to pay money to continue the job, funneling her funds through PayPal, wire transfers, and cryptocurrency. The scam involved fake business documents with a forged Maine Secretary of State seal. Dorothy, the victim, reported the scam to local and federal agencies but received few responses. The FTC reported that job scam losses more than tripled between 2020 and 2023, with task scams being a major contributor.