Hackers used a woman's Facebook to scam friends out of cash

Melissa Stombaugh in Phoenix lost control of her Facebook account this month. Hackers took over the profile and used it to sell items to her friends. The friends sent money, but the goods they ordered never existed.

The scammers posted messages on Stombaugh's account. They claimed she had to move her father into assisted living. They said they were selling his belongings to raise funds. A friend named her father sent her a text message. He joked that she was waiting until he died to sell his things. Stombaugh checked her profile and saw a list of items for sale. The list included a truck and a Peloton bike. The prices were very low.

Friends sent deposits to a Venmo account controlled by the hackers. The money did not go to Stombaugh. Several friends drove to her house to pick up their purchases. They were confused when the items were not there. One friend asked to see the truck they had put a deposit on. Stombaugh told the friend she had no idea what they were talking about.

Stombaugh could not log back into her account. The hackers had changed the email address and connected devices. She reported the issue to Facebook. The company told her the post did not violate their standards. Facebook said it would leave the post up. Stombaugh also tried to contact the scammers directly. She created a fake account to chat with them. She hoped they would try to sell her an item so she could track the transaction.

Facebook did not respond to multiple attempts to reach them about Stombaugh's case. Stombaugh said she now uses two-factor authentication on her other accounts. This security feature links devices to the account. It helps stop scammers from taking over a profile even if they have the password. She set this up after the hack occurred.

Stombaugh said she wishes she had known about the feature earlier. She enjoyed sharing family memories on the platform. She said she would delete her Facebook account if she could. She wants to be done with the service after this experience.

The story serves as a reminder for users to check security settings. Two-factor authentication is available in the Facebook settings menu. Users can find it under Passwords and Security. The system walks users through the setup process.