Facebook Scam: Shop Assistant Lost RM42,878 After Spending RM180 On A Table
The victim was tricked into giving away his bank account username and password.
Subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest stories and updates.
Some scammers are now taking advantage of advertising potential ads on social media platforms such as Facebook.
Netizens would probably have noticed that these fake ads are everywhere.
Unfortunately, many people continue to fall for fake ads as the offer is too good to resist.
Recently, a 51-year-old shop assistant became a victim after buying a dining table for RM180 on Facebook, Utusan Malaysia reported.
Instead of getting a good deal, he ended up losing RM42,878.
Head of the State Commercial Crime Investigation Department (JSJK), Superintendent Mohd. Wazir Mohd. Yusof said the victim came across the ad last Tuesday.
The victim bought a set of dining table set as the price is very cheap, only around RM180.
Superintendent Mohd. Wazir Mohd. Yusof on why the victims fell for the scam.
Mohd. Wazir said the victim made the payment through a link provided by the suspect.
After clicking on the link, the victim had to enter his username and password for his bank account.
After the victim did so, he found that RM42,878 were gone from his bank account.
After the incident, the victim tried to contact the suspect but failed and suspected that he had been deceived. He then lodged a report at the Kuantan district police headquarters (IPD).
Superintendent Mohd. Wazir Mohd. Yusof on the victim’s encounter.
The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating and all the victim’s evidence has been recorded.
The Rise Of Online Shopping Scams
Scamming has long been a pitfall of the internet.
There is often an assumption that the victims have specific traits – that they are elderly or less well educated.
But no one is immune to fraud and sometimes people simply fall for scams due to the psychological techniques such as FOMO (the fear of missing out).
Even engineer pun kena tipu dengan African Scam via Facebook! Saltina my arse! pic.twitter.com/5BGA7j4Irl
— MohdFaizalHassan 🇲🇾 (@f4izalhassan) November 7, 2015
Online scam continue to rise due to the lack of oversight on social media marketplaces.
The growing number of newbies in online shopping brought by pandemic quarantines also provided easy target for scammers.
Fake ads selling popular items at dirt cheap prices is the usual trick in the scammers book.
Scammers also convince victims by creating fake shopping websites and swiping product images from real businesses.
Tips To Avoid Getting Scammed When Shopping Online
There are many useful tips that you need to know to shop online safely.
Facebook has also taken steps to address the issue with information on how to spot and avoid scams.
At the same time, the authorities always remind the public to be vigilant.
Ditipu atau tertipu? 😢😢 Macam mana nak elak kena SCAM dalam jual beli online?
— Kpdnhep.Kelantan (@KPDNHEPKelantan) November 29, 2019
Admin nak kongsi cara cegah online scam. Jika boleh tiada lagi istilah pisang berbuah dua kali. Bak kata pepatah “Mencegah Lebih Baik Daripada Mengubati”.. #KPDNHEP #CaraCegahOnlineScam pic.twitter.com/xZflp700va
Good samaritans have also taken to social media to create awareness among netizens.
Cara nak elak dari kena scam di online
— Sophy Sufian (@visisufi) September 16, 2020
Selain daripada check melalui website Jabatan Siasatan Jenayah Komersial yang saya kongsikan sebelum ni boleh juga check Page History dia.
Berhati-hati lah kalau tengok page name dia selalu sangat berubah seperti dalam gambar ni.
B… pic.twitter.com/FsRKISM9Bc
Accounts and phone numbers can be verified at http://ccid.rmp.gov.my/semakmule/ to verify if the account or phone number has been involved in reported scams before making any payment transactions.
Share your thoughts with us via TRP’s Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
