My United Airlines Scam Story
Cybercriminals are out there figuring out ways to steal your money. When calling United Airlines make sure you are calling the right number and don’t fall into this United Airlines scam!
The Story
It’s a Tuesday evening at the end of April of this year. I’m home getting dinner ready for my family after a long day at work when I receive a call from my mom.
She is in the other line with Leo, a representative from United Airlines in Colombia.
It’s a Tuesday evening at the end of April of 2025. I’m home getting dinner ready for my family after a long day at work when I receive a call from my mom.
She called United to confirm everything was in order for her upcoming trip to the US.
After checking her flight information, Leo notified her there was an error with her name in the ticket and that she had to pay $200 USD to fix the problem. Without this change she wouldn’t be able to fly.
My mom called me to see if I could pay the fee as I had bought the ticket for her.
Leo offered her to send me an email with a link to complete the payment.
I check my email and see a first email from United with my mom’s itinerary. The itinerary looks fine as well as my mom’s name, but the email didn’t have the link to make the payment.
Two minutes later I receive a second message with the link.
Without hesitating I click the link to make the payment, but I land in a website that was not United’s.
Wait a second….something is off.
I take a pause, review the emails sent by Leo one more time and I see the warning signs.
I refuse to make the payment and I ask my mom to finish the call.
That night after putting my kids to bed, I did some research and at the end I was more than relieved of having followed my gut instinct and having refused to pay.
It turned out that Leo didn’t work for United.
He was part of a huge scam scheme that takes advantage of Google’s search engine and Google AI results to target not only United Airlines customers but other airlines as well, in Colombia and many other countries including the US.
Learn to Identify the Warning Signs of Common Scams
As a cybersecurity professional, this incident hit home because it reminded me that cybersecurity is not just an enterprise but a personal matter.
My mom and I almost fell into the United Airlines scam, and who knows how many people have fell into similar ones.
Cybercriminals are out there constantly finding new ways to steal your personal data and money.
This is why I want to share in this blog the three top warning signs of common fraud and scams and an analysis of how these warning signs were presented in my United Airlines scam story.
Let’s start with the first warning sign:
1. Scammers pretend to be from an organization you know or impersonate somebody you know and trust.
My mom used google to look for United Airlines phone number. She typed in “How to call United Airlines in Colombia” and the first response provided was from Google’s AI.
She trusted Google’s answer and she called the phone number presented. When Leo answered the phone call he pretended to be a call center agent from United and she believed it as she had made the call.
Then when Leo sent the first email with the itinerary, the email was sent from a valid and real United Airlines email.
However, the second email was sent from a different email address unrelated to United Airlines.
It turns out that as long as scammers have your last name and your flight record locator, they can use it to look for the flight in United Airlines website and can request a copy of the itinerary to be sent to any email address.
This is how Leo was able to send me a copy of my mom’s itinerary.
The first email from United was key to build trust in preparation for the second email with the payment link.
Now, the second warning sign:
2. Scammers say there’s a problem or offer a benefit or prize that is too good to be true.
In my scam story, Leo said there was a problem with my mom’s name in the ticket.
I called United Airlines directly in the US and as I suspected everything was fine with my mom’s ticket. In fact my mom flew without any issue and of course without paying the $200 USD requested by Leo.
Finally, the third warning sign:
3. Scammers use fear tactics and pressure you to act immediately. They want you to act before you have time to think.
In my scam story, Leo told my mom she wouldn’t be able to travel without correcting her name in the ticket.
Leo wanted her to pay immediately to process the change. Fortunately she reached out to me to pay the fee instead of paying it herself.
Protect Yourself from Cybercriminals
Now that you know the three top warning signs of common scams, I want to close this blog with three takeaways I learned from my United Airlines scam story so you can protect yourself, your personal information and your money too.
1. When searching in Google, don’t trust the first answer you see listed. When looking for phone numbers go to the official organization’s website and look under their contact information.
2. Be cautious when providing your credit card information online. Stick to reputable retailers and avoid entering your card information on unfamiliar or suspicious websites.
3. Resist the pressure to act immediately. Take a pause and talk to someone you trust