Beware of online fraud when dealing with unknown sellers

Station Commander at Fairland Police Station Lieutenant Colonel Clive de Freitas has warned residents to be wary of online transactions as fraud cases soar.

He said, “Believing people are honest and act with integrity when engaging in online sales is naive but criminals count on that and it’s how they succeed in fleecing people of their money.”

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He recounted a recent example when someone wanted to sell their X-box on a well-known online sales site. An e-hailing service was called to collect the machine and cash was handed over, but it turns out the payment was made with counterfeit notes.

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Another was the sale of puppies online when buyers pay thousands to cover the costs of the dog, vaccinations and transport of the dog to its new owners. “This happens a lot,” said de Freitas and people soon realise there never was a dog for sale and the contact details for the sellers no longer work.

The last example he provided was when sellers request buyers to deposit funds in order ‘to secure the item’. They receive payment and then disable contact methods and do this time and time again, making a fortune.

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De Freitas asks online shoppers to ask a lot of questions to check the veracity of the seller of an item and to not be so fast to part with their cash.

The bank will likewise never ask you to provide a One-Time-Pin (OTP) number over the phone. If someone calls and asks you to share any kind of banking-related information, please end the call and phone your bank directly to check.

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