ChatGPT Exposes $1M Crypto Scam Targeting San Jose Widow

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ChatGPT Exposes $1 Million Crypto Scam Targeting San Jose Widow

Written by Aaron S.,

Editor-In-Chief

Last Updated: December 09, 2025

Key Takeaways

A San Jose widow lost nearly $1 million after trusting a man she met online who lured her into a fake crypto investment;
The scammer posed as a businessman and used fake profit screenshots to convince her to send large sums;
After ChatGPT warned her that it was a scam, she alerted the police, who traced her funds to a Malaysian bank.

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ChatGPT Exposes $1 Million Crypto Scam Targeting San Jose Widow

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Margaret Loke, a widow from San Jose, discovered she had fallen for an online crypto scam after asking ChatGPT whether her supposed investment was real.

According to a report from ABC7 News, Loke lost her retirement funds and faced the possibility of losing her home.

Loke met a man who called himself “Ed” on Facebook in May. They began chatting on WhatsApp later. He said he was a successful businessman and stayed in touch every day.

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Over time, “Ed” started talking about cryptocurrency. Loke said she had no background in investing, but he offered to guide her.

He showed her screenshots of trading results that appeared to show big profits, which convinced Loke to transfer money to an online account he controlled.

Her first transfer was $15,000. She then moved larger sums, including more than $490,000 from her retirement account. Later, she took a $300,000 second mortgage on her home and wired that money too.

Eventually, the online account stopped working. “Ed” claimed the account was “frozen” and demanded another $1 million to unlock it. Confused and scared, Loke asked ChatGPT if the request made sense. Loke said:

ChatGPT told me: No, this is a scam, you'd better go to the police station.

Loke confronted “Ed” and then contacted the police. Investigators later found that her transfers went to a bank in Malaysia, where scammers withdrew the money.

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