You know the old saying, ‘Why do you rob banks? Because that’s where the money is.’ Well, now the money’s online,” said Alex Hamerstone, the Advisory Solutions director at Cleveland-based information security company TrustedSec.

Hamerstone explained scams, like the one that drained Traylor’s account, typically start with a phone call or text message appearing to come from your bank, utility company or other trusted institution. The phony message or rep will say you owe money or have been charged and need you to log into your account and enter a verification code. The code grants the imposter access to your account and authorizes the charge.