The “Hi Mum” (or “Hi Mom”) scam: how to spot it and react
The “Hi Mum” scam starts with a text or WhatsApp message: your child has supposedly broken or lost their phone, writes from a new number and needs money fast. They never call: the voice would give them away. The fix takes one step: call your child on their usual number.
By Sébastien Secrecy · Updated on
How does the “Hi Mum” scam unfold?
The message. “Hi Mum, it’s me, my phone is broken, text me on this number.” Sometimes “Hi Dad”, sometimes the child’s first name if the scammer found it on social media. The number is unknown, and that is presented as normal.
The conversation stays in writing. If you offer to call, the scammer has a reason: broken microphone, borrowed phone, meeting. Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr describes this refusal of the voice as the heart of the method: as long as you do not hear your child, nothing alerts you.
The request. A bill to pay today, a transfer blocked because the new phone does not have the banking app yet, “a friend’s” bank details to send the money to. Then a second request, as soon as the first has gone through.
What to do when you receive this message?
- Do not reply in writing and do not save the new number.
- Call your child on their usual number. If they answer, the message was a scam. If not, try again, or reach someone who can see them.
- Pay nothing before hearing their voice and checking their two TrustWords words.
- Report it: in France, forward the text to 33700 and call Info Escroqueries, 0 805 805 817, free. Outside France: in the UK forward the text to 7726 and call Action Fraud, 0300 123 2040; in the US, reportfraud.ftc.gov; in Australia, Scamwatch.
What TrustWords changes
With TrustWords, your child and you see the same two words, renewed every ten minutes on your two phones. A child who really changed number gives them to you in ten seconds, by voice. A scammer does not have them and cannot guess them: they pass through no server.
And if the words do not match, the app takes over: give nothing, write it down, hang up, call back the saved number. The path, screen by screen.
Frequently asked questions
What if my child really changed number?
It happens, and it is checked in one minute: call the old number, or ask for the two TrustWords words on the new one. A real change of number survives that minute; a scam does not.
Should I reply to scare them off?
No. Replying confirms that the number is active and read; it will be resold. Do not reply, forward the text to 33700 in France, block the number.
I have already paid: what now?
Call your bank right away to try to block the transfer, file a complaint, and warn your loved ones: scammers call again, sometimes posing as a service that recovers the money.
Sources: Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr, “Coucou papa, coucou maman”; Info Escroqueries, French national police, 0 805 805 817; 33700 platform for unwanted texts.