WARREN, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Facebook account of metro Detroit educator, catering business owner and gospel recording artist Peggy James has been hacked, and she's warning others of the dangers it has created for her.
James has thousands of followers on her Facebook account — an account that she now can’t get into and is asking people for money on her behalf.
"(The hacker) is saying I need help right now, if you give me the money, I’ll pay it back to you tomorrow with interest," James said.
The hacker is also calling people from Facebook using A.I. to mimic her voice.
James started receiving phone calls and texts from family and friends, double checking if she messaged them asking for money. James has been letting everyone know she was hacked Tuesday, but her heart aches for those that really are sending money.
“I just feel bad for them sending their money and I can’t give them their money back, and I’ve just been a nervous wreck," she said through tears.
Besides being an educator at multiple districts in metro Detroit over the decades, James is a gospel singer and owns her own catering company, which has offers to cater for the NFL Draft next month. She takes many of her orders through Facebook and the hackers have begun reaching out to clients and customers.
"So now, it’s affecting my business," James said.
Unfortunately, Facebook has become a common avenue for hackers to gain access to information, photos and accounts, and James is not the only one going through this.
"Facebook as a platform really allows for long-form communication photos, text," cybersecurity expert Thomas Holt said. "Facebook has some utility for a scammer that allows for more immediate victimization of the average person than some other platforms."
James reached out to Facebook to take the account down and was told someone would get back to her within 180 days. She also reached out to police, who said there was nothing they could do.
"The response from social media companies may not be immediate or it may not feel particularly great because you may not hear anything for some time," Holt said. "It is really difficult because we traditionally think of police agencies as being able to handle all crimes. But it's really hard in the case of certain forms of online crime."
Holt recommends for everyone to change their passwords often and make them difficult. He also suggests using two-step verification whenever it's offered and for people not to put too much revealing personal information on social media.
For now, James says she'll continue reaching out to customers and friends telling them to not send any money and hopes her account is shut down soon so she can move forward.
7 Action News reached out to Facebook for comment Wednesday but have not heard back.
