“Together with my savings and line of credit I lost $750,000,” said Elizabeth Backos of Etobicoke.
Bakos said that since her stroke she rarely leaves her house and spends a lot of time online.
In January of this year he was searching the Internet for investment opportunities when he watched a video of Elon Musk saying that you can buy stocks through a website for $250 each.
“I thought it would be good for Elon Musk to offer his shares for $250,” Bakos said.
Bakos said she put her email, phone number and other information on the website and almost immediately started getting calls from all over the world.
Bakos said a man who claimed to have the same last name as one of her relatives also said he was a family man who picks up stray dogs to care for and said he could help her start investing right away.
“He asked me, ‘Are you looking for investments?’  And I said, “yes.”  He asked me if I saw the Elon Musk video and I said ‘yes’ and he said ‘I can help you,'” Bakos said.
The man advised Bako to download the AnyDesk computer program, remote access software that would give him complete control over her computer so he could help her invest.
“The next thing I know he was getting $20,000 there and $10,000 there.  He made me believe 100% that I was making money,” Bakos said.
Bakos said that while the man showed her documents online that made it look like her investments were growing, she eventually realized that none of her money had been invested and had simply been taken from her.
Between January and April of this year, Backos said the scammer drained her accounts of $750,000.

“I am desperate now and can no longer sleep or eat. I’ve been calling trying to get my money back, but now I’m afraid it’s gone for good,” Bakos said. Tech expert Carmi Levy of London, Ontario said the chances are the video Bakos watched was doctored and may even have been a deep fake impersonating Elon Musk. “Deep Fake video technology has become so sophisticated that it’s becoming increasingly difficult even for experts to tell that it’s not Elon Musk talking,” Levy said. Levy also said that you should never allow anyone to remotely access your computer unless you know exactly who they are and what their intentions are. “When someone unknown is using remote software to access your device, you want to stand there and watch your system carefully because you want to make sure they’re not logging into your bank account and robbing you blind,” Levy said. Using remote access might be something you could use if you needed technical support for a short time with a trusted source, but allowing an outsider into your system could have dire consequences, Levy said. “You have to be on top of that and really trust the person you’re giving access to, because if you don’t trust them completely, you shouldn’t do it and immediately turn off your device,” Levy said. Bakos is with a credit union, and when she complained, she was told she shouldn’t give remote access to a stranger and report the theft to the police. Now Bakos is worried she might lose her home. “I’m so worried about what will happen to me now. Something has to be done to stop these scammers around the world,” Bakos said. Remote access programs can also be hidden inside malware and viruses, so don’t click on links or download attachments you don’t know. According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, Canadians have already lost $284.7 million to fraud as of July 31.