Featured Image Credit: PA Media / Witthaya Prasongsin / Getty
A man who was scammed out of thousands while on holiday after his identity was sold on the dark web has issued an important warning to others.
The science teacher has lost £3,500 ($4,577) out of his savings which a hacker used to pay for a hotel and drinks tab.
Matthew Shaw found out about the scam while he was on vacation in Cornwall, UK, with his wife Davina.
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His bank sent a notification to his phone to let him know that he had just spent thousands on a hotel stay.
In a panic, the couple were forced to end their trip early as they tried to resolve the problem.
According to The Mirror, Matthew spoke to his bank who said that a hacker had used his identity after finding his details on the dark web.
Luckily, he was able to get the money refunded back into his account around a week later.
After tightening his security measures, the 27-year-old says that he’s since had at least six or seven unauthorized attempts to gain access to his email account.
Recalling the event, he said: “I had a notification at the top of my phone saying, £3,500 has been paid to a hotel.
“I thought, ‘Oh my God, what is this?’, and I rang First Direct straight away and said, ‘This is not me’. They were going through their security questions, but I was just panicking and thinking, ‘All my money's gone - that was our savings for a house and it's all gone.’”
The biggest change that Matthew has made was enabling two-factor authentication on his email account, something he says he didn’t previously have.
And now, he’s issued an important warning to others to encourage them to tighten up their own online security measures.
Speaking to The Mirror, Matthew said: “You just don't think it's going to happen to you until it happens. If I can educate at least one person - like my job as a teacher - then I've done my job.”
A First Direct spokesperson said: “Protecting our customers from fraud and scams is a key priority for us and we have a range of features in place to spot unusual activity on an account and protect our customers’ money. In this case, we’re really pleased we were able to intervene when Mr Shaw's details were compromised and refund the money promptly.
“It is also standard practice for us to offer additional support to those customers who are victims of fraud, to give them extra assurances when making further payments so they feel confident and supported when managing their account.”
