Scam Notice

On June 5, 2025, I received an email claiming that my McAfee subscription had expired and that I was charged $730. The message instructed me to call if I wanted to cancel, which I did. I spoke with someone who guided me through a process that appeared to be connected to Better Business Bureau, presented as a “preferred business.”

They had me log into a portal and access a refund page where I was instructed to enter amounts in two parts, starting with $300. When I entered it, the system glitched, added multiple zeros, and jumped to the confirmation page showing a deposit of $30,000. The representative insisted this had to be corrected immediately, warning that it would look like fraudulent activity and that the BBB could come after me.

I overheard him on a call saying things like, “No, I don’t want to report her, it was a mistake, how can we fix it?” Shortly after, I received emails about an inactive warrant. We went back through the portal again, and he already had the last four digits of my bank account. I told him I never purchased McAfee, and he replied that it came pre-installed on my new computer and that the information came from the service provider.

He instructed me to take specific details to my bank and complete a wire transfer before the $30,000 actually appeared in my account. I followed his directions, which ultimately took my money. When I returned home, he reassured me by showing a “security wall” on the portal that supposedly proved my funds were still there, just hidden from the bank’s view. He said the computer needed to remain connected to the portal to transfer the money back to the BBB and that I would receive courier documents to prevent government action.

The person identified himself as Daniel Christopher, McAfee Billing Manager, while the BBB emails were signed by Michael Sedio. The warrant email listed case #5478913548 with a link to the Davie Police Department.

This entire ordeal was devastating—I just want my money back.

A BBB employee submitted a scam report after a consumer in Atlantic City, NJ, called to report receiving an email from someone claiming to be Michael Sedio, VP and COO of the BBB, regarding a scam. The consumer explained that he was first contacted by a person impersonating “Geek Squad,” who falsely claimed he had a membership with them. The imposter gained his trust and accessed his computer. While in control, they created a fake display showing that a large sum of money had been deposited into his account and insisted he needed to return it. In reality, no money was ever deposited. Over the course of three transactions, the consumer sent a total of $700,000 of his own funds via Citi Bank transfers, which he believes went to an account in China. Following these transactions, he received emails from someone pretending to be Michael Sedio at the BBB, claiming that the money had been deposited and threatening law enforcement action if the matter was not “resolved.” The imposter used the email address betterbusinessbureau4@gmail.com to send two letters to the consumer.

A BBB employee submitted a Scam Tracker report on behalf of a victim. On Thursday, August 22, the victim received an email indicating that a $735.99 payment had been made on their behalf for a one-year Microsoft 365 subscription via auto-debit. The victim called the customer service number on the invoice to report the unauthorized transaction. A representative claiming to be from the BBB answered and transferred the call to a second representative, “Ramsey Russell,” who also claimed BBB affiliation and said his supervisor was Michael Sedio.

Russell instructed the victim to download software from a website to process a refund, which was to be issued in two installments: $500 and $235.99. During the process, an error caused $5,000 to appear in the victim’s Chase account instead of $500. The victim then received an email, allegedly from the BBB, claiming a complaint had been filed against them for attempting to fraudulently receive funds and warning of potential law enforcement involvement.

Russell told the victim the deposit could not be reversed and instructed them to purchase $5,000 in gift cards from a BBB-associated business and send images of the cards to him to “return” the funds. Despite multiple warnings from bank and store staff, the victim followed the instructions, believing the deposited funds would cover the gift card purchases. After sending the images, the victim received another email, purportedly from the BBB, claiming the transactions proved settlement of the disputed deposit.

Russell also instructed the victim not to discuss the incident or log into their bank account until the next day, threatening legal action for defamation. The victim later attempted to contact Russell and the BBB, and informed Russell they would involve authorities. The bank account now shows a pending $5,000 hold, with a current balance of about $12, and the victim acknowledges liability for any resulting negative balance.

The victim submitted the report to alert authorities and prevent others from falling for similar scams.