To use this site, please disable the ad blocking feature and reload the page.
This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content, and analyzing our website traffic. By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies.
Users accessing this site from EEA countries and UK are unable to view this site without your consent. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
I’m a nurse in my 50s. My daughter, who is in her 20s and lives with me, became a victim of fraud.
She messaged someone on Line for about a week and ended up sending them ¥6 million. I found out about it when I saw the bank transfer receipt in the trash, and we went to the police together.
My daughter is a very serious person. Ever since she was young, she has lived humbly and has never recklessly spent money.
I’m relieved that she’s safe and not physically hurt. But it still bothers me when I think that I might have been able to help her avoid becoming a victim if I had taught her more carefully about the value of money and how online fraud has become such a problem in society.
I also wonder if she might have been feeling somewhat lonely.
You can make money as long as you work, so it is not the end of the world to lose money. But my daughter is currently going through a tough time emotionally. I’m thinking about taking her to see a psychiatrist or something to get her the help she needs. What should I do to give her a more positive outlook?
I, Shizuoka Prefecture
Dear Ms. I:
You wrote that your daughter was caught up in a scam and you would like advice on how to support her. However, you left out something important.
In my opinion, ¥6 million is too large an amount for a woman in her 20s to easily come up with. Where did the money come from? Did she take out a loan? Or was she able to easily access the family’s savings?
Fraudsters use a variety of tricks to exploit their target’s wishes or anxieties. In investment fraud, for example, they take advantage of a person’s desire to make more money or anxiety over their financial situation.
In romance fraud, they manipulate a person’s desire to get married or have a relationship.
Depending on the kind of fraud she was involved in, you can figure out what triggered her anxiety, which then led to her being deceived. This is an essential piece of information in deciding what kind of help she should receive going forward.
You wrote that she sent the person the money after messaging them for about a week. It’s concerning that she seems not to have talked to anyone, be it a friend or a family member, about it during that time. Perhaps she has no one to talk to regularly or may be hesitant to get advice from someone else.
Some people do not ask others for advice because they believe or have some confidence that they will never become a victim of fraud.
It’s important to get her the care that she needs over the fact that she was caught up in the scam. But I also believe it’s necessary to properly look into what led to her getting involved in the first place.
