‘Shark Tank’ Judge Recoups $400K Lost In Phishing Scam

Barbara Corcoran, a judge on the popular TV show “Shark Tank,” said she is “thrilled” about getting back almost $400,000 that she lost during a phishing email scam, according to reports.

Corcoran said a scammer with an email address that was very similar to her assistant’s tricked her bookkeeper to wire $388,700 for a supposed renovation. On Monday (March 2), she said she had “already accepted” that the money was gone and had moved on.

“I really thought I was a goner,” she said.

In a fortuitous turn of events, a German-based bank handling the transfer froze it before it could be deposited into an account in China. Corcoran said her bank asked for the freeze so her team could figure out what was happening and verify whether the transaction was fraudulent.

Scamming and phishing are increasingly more common; about 114,000 people admitted they were scam victims last year alone. According to the FBI’s 2019 Internet Crime Report, phishing scams accounted for almost $60 million in losses.

Corcoran said she often doubted herself on her path to becoming a successful investor.

“I got through school as a straight D student, so I spent the first 10 years of my career second-guessing myself as to whether I was smart or not. What a waste of time that was! It took me the next 10 years to prove to myself that I was,” she said. “But in hindsight, almost everything I’ve accomplished was a result of my insecurity, because it made me over-prepare for everything and work twice as hard as the next guy. I’m happy I wasn’t smart sooner.”

She also said she got her first loan from someone close to her.

“My first boyfriend and business partner loaned me $1,000 to start my real estate business. Seven years later, he left to marry my secretary.”