Don't let bad actors steal your money

“Hey Lance, are you able to send me an outgoing wire form? emergency! Thanks!”

We received this email from a client yesterday asking if we could send them paperwork to complete a wire transfer. We do many transactions a day and on the surface, it seems like a reasonable request as we wire money all the time. I responded to the client and asked a few questions, as the cadence of the email from this client seemed off relative to my experience with him. I asked what the nature of the emergency was and the information I would need for the wire.

He responded and said the emergency was for his daughter in law, who he named, and he gave the wire instructions with routing and account numbers, requesting $94,000 which in the big scheme wasn’t an unreasonable amount.

It still felt off.

I called his home phone. When he picked up, the line was choppy, and I couldn’t make out what he was saying. I hung up and called again – same thing and I became pretty uncomfortable. I tried he and his wife’s cell phones but I know he doesn’t like cell phones, and I also texted them both asking them to call me. I also replied to the email saying when we spoke I’d be asking him a question about our relationship that only he and I would know to verify his identity.

Then our phone rang, and the client’s name was on my screen. I picked up but again the choppy line. I hung up. Then I got this email:

“Hey Lance, I tried calling you back. the service sucks...”

Finally, around 5:30PM I got another call, the client’s name on my screen, and when I picked up it was my client (calling from his cell phone). I described the situation, and none of it was him, neither the calls or the emails. It turns out his home phone (which is internet based) had been compromised, he had been receiving calls from himself recently, but others have not been able to call his home.

Turns out our service doesn’t suck – I didn’t send this client’s $94K and I took every step I could to verify his identity. I then called Ameriprise anti-fraud department and arranged for the client's online access to be locked down until the client can verify that his situation is secure online. I don't use Ameriprise's resources often but, in this case, they were very helpful.

It’s scary when you think about it because this wasn’t just email, it was also phone. Even though it will delay things and it seems like an email request should be enough, we verbally confirm transactions to verify identity. I’ve also been hearing about A.I. that can even do voice impersonations so even voice is going to be compromised in the not-distant future. I asked the client if he would have known the answer to my “safe word” question and he would have, and I think this is something we should be implementing across our client base. But the whole thing made me think.

In an increasingly digital and unsafe online world, having actual people who know you, knowing your writing cadence, knowing your voice, knowing your financial situation and your family is going to be more important, not less. Financial firms are joining together and getting bigger for scale, but in so doing the relationship can be lost. We try to be a blend of big enough and small enough – sure, we do the work of planning with you for your future and managing your wealth. But we also at times are a trusted voice to encourage you to take a minute before making decisions (like selling when the market is down) and to help protect you from situations like this, whereas with some firms where you aren't known it’s possible this just might have gone through.

There are times I worry what technology may do to Diane and my relationship-based business over time, but increasingly I feel like even though tech is everywhere, it’s the people you have the relationship and trust with that will remain the most important thing.