Bank Prevents Woman from Making Catastrophic Decision
A Westpac Bank employee recently intervened to prevent a woman from making a financially catastrophic decision due to an online scam.
Mariana Karbowski, a teller at Westpac’s Liverpool Branch, grew suspicious when a senior citizen appeared anxious about selling her home and canceling her insurance with the bank.
Upon inquiry, the woman mentioned she needed the money to “help her son,” but further questioning revealed she intended to use the funds to bail out an online boyfriend from a foreign prison. Karbowski, whose own father was a victim of a scam, conducted a reverse image search of the purported boyfriend and found that the numerous photos sent to the client were posted online under various names.
After showing the woman the images, Karbowski helped comfort her. She then walked the woman to the police station to report the scam.
Westpac aims to replicate this level of vigilance in its online banking services with an AI feature designed to ask probing questions similar to those a concerned relative might pose, thereby preventing potentially fraudulent transactions.
This initiative reflects a broader industry concern over scams targeting vulnerable individuals, including those with dementia or who are less internet-savvy. Another bank, ANZ Bank, recently reimbursed an elderly client with early-stage dementia after scammers drained AUD$500,000 from his account. The fraud department concluded that the bank should have had more protective measures for customers’ account because of his condition.
Great to see proactive employees that are looking out for people!
There should be a squad of either private or goverment sponsored trackers to find these scammers and make efforts to eliminate them from the human race.
Sounds like something the UN should be doing instead of screwing us over with the “New World Order”.