A user on TikTok is warning those with an Uber account about a potential new scam to which she almost fell victim.
In a video with over 2.7 million views, TikTok user Ma’kiah Michelle (@makiahmichelle) says that she, along with a group of friends, was in New York’s Grand Central Station charging her phone when a stranger approached her. After a bit of conversation, the woman asked a peculiar question
“She’s like, ‘Oh well, I just have a question. Can you guys get me an Uber? I have the cash, I have the cash. I’ll pay you back right here,’” Michelle recalls. Later, the TikToker adds, “The girl pulled out money, and it’s like 50s—like, I’m seeing 50s and all this stuff. So I’m just looking at it wondering, like, if you got all this money, like what? It’s just not making sense.”
Sensing something was off, Michelle says that her friend suggested the woman just take a taxi instead, as Grand Central is frequently surrounded by available taxis.
“She was not expecting that answer,” Michelle states. “She was like…’OK. Um, um, I think I’ll take the cab. I think I’ll take the cab.’ … Mind you, we’re literally in a train station. That’s when it all clicked for me—I was like, ‘We’re literally in a train station. We’re in New York, there are cabs right outside.’”
After this response, Michelle says that a man who was traveling with the woman again pressed Michelle and her friends about whether they could call an Uber; the group declined.
To close out her video, Michelle advises people not to fall for this “scam.” However, commenters had some difficulty figuring out what the scam even was, leading to speculation
“They were probably going to rob the uber driver under ur account name so it didn’t trace back to them,” suggested a commenter.
“The money was probably counterfeit,” offered a second.
“Or change the location in the car. Next thing they’re off to Jersey on your dime,” stated a third.
@makiahmichelle Yall think “can you order me an Uber” is the new scam? #nyc #fyp ♬ original sound – Ma’ kiah Michelle
No matter what the specifics of the scam are, commenters say they’ve experienced something similar.
“This happened to me. She asked me for an Uber ride that was 6 dollars but she only had 50s so she wanted change back. I told her I would just pay for it and she told me to forget about it,” stated a commenter.
Users on Reddit make similar claims. Numerous Redditors allege that someone has attempted something similar to them, with the potential reasons for these strange requests echoing those mentioned by TikTok commenters.
In a follow-up video, Michelle responds to some of the questions commenters had about this potential scam.
@makiahmichelle Replying to @kerena1 ♬ original sound – Ma’ kiah Michelle
“The ways that it could have been a scam—the money that she said she was gonna give could have been fake money,” she details. “I don’t know what they would have done when they got into the Uber. … People were saying it could bring harm to the Uber driver. They get robbed, they could try to steal the car, they could do other illegal activities in the car. They could get sick in the car or cause things that will need the clean up fees and all that, because who are they gonna charge? Whose account is linked? Mine.”
“Plus, I do wanna say in my situation, like I said, I was at the train station. I was also in New York City, the hub of transportation,” she adds later in the video. “There are trains, there are taxis, there’s the metro—like, Uber was not the only option that they had. And to also have money on you? It just wasn’t making sense. And that was a red flag, right?”
Commenters agreed.
“At first thought, I’m like no harm no foul. I order you an Uber, you hand me cash. Then I start thinking what happens if the rob the Uber driver? The police are coming to see me as the last passenger,” shared a user.
“I think anytime your gut is telling you something you need to follow it,” advised a second. “when the vibe is off follow.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Uber and Michelle via email.
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