Someone sent me money by accident and wants it back. Is this a scam?
Omg I'm SO sorry!! I just sent $300 to the wrong person 😭 I was trying to pay my babysitter and put in the wrong number. Can you please send it back?? I really need it, it's for my kids. My cashapp is $MarieL2024. I'll send you $20 extra for the trouble, just please send it back asap 🙏🙏
Do not send it back yourself. An unexpected payment from a stranger is not a windfall and usually not a mistake: the money often came from a stolen card or a hacked account, so it will be reversed later. If you have refunded it by hand in the meantime, the reversal takes the original back and your refund is gone too, leaving you down twice.
How to spot this scam
- Money arrives from someone you do not know, followed quickly by a message calling it a mistake.
- You are asked to send it back by a different route than it came, which is how the original can later be reversed while your refund cannot.
- The sender is pushy and emotional, and wants it resolved in minutes rather than through the app's own process.
- The original payment may have been made with a stolen card or account, so it will be clawed back regardless of what you do.
- You are asked to send to a different name or number than the one that paid you.
- They suggest gift cards, crypto or a wire transfer for the return, which are the methods the FTC lists as favoured because they cannot be undone.
What to do now
- Do not send anything back directly, however reasonable the story sounds.
- Report it inside the app you received it in, and let the provider handle the reversal so both sides are visible to whoever decides it.
- Tell your bank if the amount is significant, and keep the messages.
- Never move the conversation to text or another app at the sender's request.
- If you already returned money and the original was then reversed, report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and raise it with your bank the same day.
- Block the sender afterwards, since the same account often tries again with a different story.
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Sources and reporting
Use official channels to confirm a suspicious request and report fraud.