Bank Customer Struggles, Secures Reimbursement after $13,000 Stolen through Bank Fraud by Wells Fargo, Initially Unequivocally Denied
In a series of recent incidents, bank scams involving cryptocurrencies have been reported among Wells Fargo customers, marking a rise in sophisticated social engineering tactics that manipulate victims into making large cash withdrawals and depositing funds into fraudulent crypto-related accounts or ATMs.
On August 3, 2025, a 63-year-old woman named Sharon Schoolcraft lost $13,000 after receiving a call from someone claiming to be working at Wells Fargo, who alerted her to possible fraudulent charges made to her account. Despite her attempts to seek a refund from the bank, Wells Fargo initially refused to reimburse Schoolcraft. However, following media involvement, the bank agreed to refund her stolen money.
Similar scams have affected other Wells Fargo customers, with scammers convincing the bank's customers that their accounts are at risk and tricking them into giving up their PINs, cutting up their bank cards, and meeting someone in person to hand over the cut-up cards. The scammers often know about recent charges the victims have legitimately made, making the scam believable.
These scams reflect a broader trend of increasingly sophisticated, AI-enhanced fraud techniques exploiting the rise in cryptocurrency and mobile banking use. Key trends observed include the use of highly personalized social engineering, where scammers use convincing narratives such as government fines or account security problems to exploit victims’ fear and urgency. Scammers also misrepresent cryptocurrency symbols and payment systems to confuse victims into making payments.
Targeting of Wells Fargo customers along with other banks such as JPMorgan Chase and US Bank indicates a broad-based fraud campaign exploiting mobile and in-person banking channels. Victims are often entrapped through fake calls or emails, sometimes while scammers hijack their devices to control the process and prevent intervention.
In addition, there is an increasing use of mobile banking malware and AI-powered phishing, beyond in-person withdrawal scams. Crypto scams increasingly rely on fraudulent transaction approvals using fake wallet addresses that appear legitimate by mimicking partial characters, causing multimillion-dollar losses.
The Daily Hodl reports that these scams are categorized under Bitcoin, Ethereum, Trading, Altcoins, Futuremash, Financeflux, Blockchain, Regulators, Scams, HodlX, Press Releases, and Industry Announcements. The Crypto Markets section is available for submission, and the HODLX section includes Latest Stories, FAQ, and Submit Guest Post. The Industry Announcements section includes Latest, Press Releases, Chainwire, Sponsored Posts, and Submit Your Content.
Sharon Schoolcraft expressed her gratitude for getting her money back, stating that she can pay back the person she had to borrow money from and get her bills back on track. However, the future of finance, including macro, Bitcoin, Ethereum, crypto, and web 3, remains uncertain as these scams continue to evolve and exploit the growing use of cryptocurrencies and mobile banking.
[1] Source: The Daily Hodl, August 3, 2025 [2] Source: CIFAS, August 3, 2025 [3] Source: Unnamed sources, August 3, 2025 [4] Source: Unnamed sources, August 3, 2025 [5] Source: The Daily Hodl, August 3, 2025
[1] The rise in bank scams involving cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, has been observed among Wells Fargo customers, with altcoins and mobile banking also being targeted by these sophisticated scams.
[2] The banking-and-insurance industry is facing an increasing number of AI-enhanced fraud incidents, including the use of phishing and mobile banking malware, as scammers exploit the growing use of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency.
[3] These scams, categorized under Bitcoin, Ethereum, Trading, Altcoins, and Blockchain, have resulted in multimillion-dollar losses, with industry regulators scrutinizing the evolving landscape of cryptocurrency and mobile banking.
