Let me start with a question: “If the shoe was one the other foot, how would we react?” I was walking past Old Mate the other day and she had her phone on speaker (rather than using an ear horn).
She was listening to a blurb about weight loss that clearly sounded to me like artificial intelligence (AI). I paused, thought about saying something, considered the ramifications and moved on as if nothing had happened.
About 10 minutes later, I was out in the garage that George (my four-legged bestie) and I frequent as a safe haven from the birds and Old Mate, when she came out and told me that she may have been scammed. She was sure she had stopped payment on our credit card but asked if I could check. “What a surprise,” I thought (but never said).
Now, I am the principal cardholder on a NAB account – one I have had for nearly 50 years. So, I got the job of being put on hold and getting asked numerous questions by a computer that I couldn’t answer.
Eventually, I got to a human. He identified the buffoon on the other end of phone fairly quickly, looked at the account and confirmed that there was a transaction on there that the bank had stopped. It was about three times more than what Old Mate had signed up for.
I had to cancel the card and then sit through a lecture about card security and what to look out for – particularly AI-generated shit on Facebook – which was just awesome.
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I have to say, though, that the assistant was very helpful and efficient and got the job done. Thanks, NAB.
So, I relay to Old Mate what occurred during the 45 minutes of my life I wasn’t getting back, and the only reply I got was: “Yes, I thought it was a scam – that’s why I stopped”.
Now, back to the question I asked at the beginning.
A few years ago, I nearly fell for the toll-fee scam and had to go through the whole bank ordeal while Old Mate gave me a long lecture about how stupid I’d been. It went on forever, like a sermon in a Catholic church. When the shoe was on the other foot, all I got was a smile. That was the end of it.
My dear old dad used to say that you can learn something from someone every day of the week. You just have to listen. So, after nearly 43 years of marriage, I’m still learning from Old Mate. This week’s lesson is: “Rules for you, exceptions for me”.
Ashley Robinson is Metropolitan Caloundra Surf Club CEO, chairman of Thunder Netball and a lifetime Sunshine Coast resident.
