CBS News chief correspondent Matt Gutman revealed that he was nearly tricked into emptying his bank account by a highly sophisticated phone scammer. The incident occurred on Friday afternoon as Gutman was leaving a Bank of America branch in Los Angeles.
Gutman, 48, shared his experience in a video posted to X, formerly Twitter, stating he had been called by someone claiming to be from the bank's fraud protection team. The caller warned him of suspected illegal withdrawals from his account. The scammer provided Gutman with a name and badge ID, and seemed to possess detailed knowledge of his banking information. The caller's claims were made more believable due to recent suspicious activity on Gutman's daughter's account.
The scammer then instructed Gutman that two fraudsters were at his bank and identified them by aliases. To intercept these individuals, Gutman was told he needed to withdraw all the money from his account. The scammer claimed this action would "trigger the fraudsters into action" and allow them to be caught.
Gutman found this request unusual, questioning why a civilian would be involved in a sting operation. The scammer further instructed him not to inform any bank employees of the suspected fraud, suggesting they might be complicit. This warning immediately raised Gutman's suspicion, prompting him to leave the bank without withdrawing any funds.
"There is no way that this is possibly real, that anybody would use a regular civilian for a sting operation at a bank," Gutman stated, reflecting on his close call. "And I am a journalist, and I have done scam stories so many times throughout my career, and I came so close to falling for it!"
He emphasized the dangerous potential of the scam, noting that he would have been vulnerable walking around with thousands of dollars in cash, particularly since the scammers had directed him to his local bank branch. Gutman was told that such tactics often lead to victims being robbed in their cars or elsewhere.
Gutman thanked the Los Angeles Police Department and Bank of America employees for their assistance in preventing a potentially dangerous situation. He acknowledged that the experience made him realize he was not as "savvy" as he believed, and cautioned others to be extremely vigilant against increasingly sophisticated scams. "I'm just blown away by how good that person was. I can't get over this," he added.