Help a Single Mom Recover from Devastating Scam

I am a 63-year-old single mom who has spent years working multiple jobs to get by, preventing me from adequately saving for retirement or my 17-year-old son's college education. But I had the blessing of loving parents who worked hard and saved their whole lives. After my mother's death, I was surprised and moved to discover that she had set aside a significant amount of money for me and my two siblings.

Now $100,000 of that money is gone. I was scammed out of 80% of my retirement savings and all of my inheritance in a shockingly brazen and cruel scam that has me feeling desperate, ashamed and alone. It started with a fake MacAfee customer service number which enabled scammers to access my bank account. (I have since learned that there are more fake MacAfee customer service numbers than legitimate ones. Please be aware!)

I have never asked anyone for money before and this feels very uncomfortable for me. Fortunately, I have full-time employment with benefits and hope to work as long as I am able. But with my savings gone, I don't know when (or if) I can afford to retire.

I have been carrying a lot of shame over the fact that I was scammed. I believe that my brain fog from long COVID played a big role in the scammers' ability to take advantage of me in this way. Long COVID is known to cause brain fog which can sometimes cloud judgement and thought processes.

Once I realized what had happened, I went to my bank, a credit union, where the manager threw up her hands and said the money was gone and there was nothing they could do. I reported the crime to the police and they did investigate but to no avail. I filed a report with the FBI, the Consumer Protection Bureau, the New York Attorney General's Office, MacAfee and none of these agencies could offer a solution for tracking down the criminals or recovering the money. I also contacted a lawyer who said that I had little recourse for getting the money back, as the scammers had cleverly covered their tracks.

I know there are a lot of worthy causes in the world and many people who are suffering, physically, emotionally and financially. Over the years I have raised money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the American Cancer Society and the American Lung Association. And I had wondered, Who am I to ask for help? But friends convinced me that I was as deserving as anyone of support.

Any one of us could be scammed. In fact, as CBS News has reported, America is having an online scam epidemic . Consumers reported losing more than $10 billion to fraud in 2023.

I never thought I would be one of them. Any amount you could contribute would mean the world to me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.