A recent Facebook impersonation scam has been revealed as a deceptive attempt to trick a friend into sending money for a nonexistent $150,000 grant. The scam unfolded when a scammer hijacked a woman’s account to pose as her and approached her friend, Jim, with a purported financial opportunity. The message began with a casual greeting, quickly shifting into a sales pitch for the program, claiming that the victim had already received the funds.
Jim, a tech industry veteran, was engaged but remained cautious, recognizing the subtle manipulations at play. The scammer, using an alias, presented the grant as a government-backed initiative, requiring a fee to