Massachusetts dog daycare owner says Facebook hacker scammed clients: "It's been horrible"

The owner of a doggy daycare and boarding service in Norfolk, Massachusetts says her business has been negatively impacted after her Facebook page was hacked last week and used to scam her clients out of money.

"It's been horrible. I've been completely consumed. Not sleeping, obsessing, angry at Meta," said Carol Gomes.

Gomes said she lost access to the page she used to promote her business, Puppy's Paradise Home Boarding & Daycare, last Tuesday.

"The first thing I did was look on Facebook, and it didn't recognize my password," Gomes said. "I tried to reset it, and it didn't recognize my phone."

After multiple attempts to regain access, she says she was eventually locked out. That's when her phone started ringing nonstop.

"He was selling trucks, cars, lawnmowers, farm equipment, tractors, backhoes," she said.

Gomes says people began reaching out after paying $1,000 deposits for items the scammer falsely claimed she was selling to support a sick uncle.

"And people believed it, even my own children," she said. "The minute they hit send through the Bank of America Zelle account, they were blocked."

Now, she worries the trust she's spent more than 20 years building with clients could be in jeopardy.

"If it was personal, it might be different. But because it's my business and my reputation, people are probably wondering where I am," she explained. "One look, and they might just swipe away left, and I'm done."

Meta has since taken the page down. WBZ's request for comment on the issue has gone unanswered.

In the meantime, Gomes has reported the incident to local police, the FBI, the Attorney General's Office, and the Better Business Bureau. 

"I think the end result is just helping people find a way to get their page back," she said. "I can't let it go in my own mind and if I have to start over, of course I will. But I'm going to fight this as long as I have the energy."