Beware of ‘fake friend’ scam in Durban North
A woman was scammed out of R1600 when a con artist contacted her using a friends name as an alias.
CAROL Van Tonder of Independent Crisis Team (ICT) has warned the community to beware of scams.
The warning comes after local Golden Hours Market organiser, Lyn Wilson, was scammed out of R1600 when a con artist contacted her using a friends name as an alias. This is just one case in a recent spate of scams, said Von Tonder.
“Sadly people are being taken advantage of during the lockdown as it’s difficult to know who genuinely needs help. Scammers use Facebook to identify your friends who might need help and steal their identification. Then, with the modus operandi of saying they have a problem with their own phone and using another one they play on one’s emotions. Even email accounts are being intercepted, so the money is paid into the wrong account,” she said.
Also read: Scam artist targets north Durban pensioners, warns resident
Lyn Wilson, who has run the popular Golden Hours Market in Durban North for 30 years, was recently a victim of a scam.
“I received a WhatsApp message from my ‘friend’ – the tone of the message didn’t make me suspect it wasn’t her. I am probably too gullible, but she said she needed money to get some medication and petrol. She said she was so embarrassed to ask and had been mulling it over all day, so I thought she was really desperate. I did an EFT of R800 which would go through by the next morning. She then asked if I could reverse it and rather do an E-wallet as she needed the money urgently. I did the E-wallet but couldn’t reverse the EFT and asked my ‘friend’ to pay me back for the extra money,” said Wilson.
Also read: Roads Agency debunks fake job scam
She said she has learned never to trust a text message.
“I know I’ve got little chance of getting my money back, but I want to stop them before they rob more innocent people. Rather phone and meet in person if friends need money,” she said.
Von Tonder echoed the advice, saying: “The bottom line is never pay anything before checking with the person by speaking to them, or checking with a company’s finance department. Emotionally, people who are scammed are left traumatised and depressed.”
Caxton Local Media Covid-19 reporting
Dear reader,
As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as “fake news”) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19.
Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za).
You can also sign up for news alerts on Telegram. Send us a Telegram message (not an SMS) with your name and surname (ONLY) to 060 532 5532. 
Here’s where you can download Telegram on Android or Apple.
