Toledo woman falls victim to virtual pickpocketing

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - She thought she was helping others but instead, Cindy Forbes was helping them to her bank account.

Forbes says she was shopping around Kroger by herself Saturday evening when two teens asked if they could use her phone to get a hold of a ride.

“I was holding my phone in my hands so I found it a little weird to say no, so, I said yes. I never thought anything about it,” said Forbes.

According to Forbes, it was not until she got home that she noticed something was off.

“My Cash App button wasn’t where it belonged so my home screen didn’t look right,” Forbes said.

Asking her family for help, that is when they figured out what the teens had done to Forbes’s phone.

“She said so the last person you sent money to was $150? I said absolutely not. Well, how about $200? Well, that’s how I knew,” Forbes said. “How can I be that dumb?”

She is not the only one who has fallen victim to a scam like this, though. A quick Google search shows it is happening all across the U.S.

“If I was with her, it wouldn’t have happened I don’t think, said Forbes’s daughter Angie. “The world isn’t the same.”

As she waits to find out if she will get any of her stolen money back, Forbes offers this advice, “Do not let anyone touch your phone, not even your kids.”

She says she also filed reports with the police, her bank, and Cash App, and for better security, she put a pin on all her financial apps.

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