$300K returned to South Carolina victim following e-mail scam

ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – Detectives with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office said more than $300,000 was returned to a victim after being scammed via email in July.

The sheriff’s office said an investigation was initiated when a liquidation company in Williamston was attempting to pay an outstanding bill. In reality, a total of $527,000 was wired to a hacker.

Investigators said it appears the suspect hacked the business’s email and searched for any ongoing threads on outstanding invoices. The hacker used the same letterhead as the company that was owed money and informed the victim that the their banking information had changed.

Deputies said the balance owed matched the amount due but the destination of the transfer did not match the company.

Detectives were able to follow the money trail of four different wire transfers and retrieve about $305,000 back to the liquidation company.

The sheriff’s office recommends that if anyone notices changes in a company’s provided banking information, verify and double-check the account by calling the business.

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