Fake payment scams mainly target people who advertise and sell goods online. This is according to Captain Carla Hartley, media spokesperson for the Delmas Police.
“The scammer will show interest in something that you advertise online. They will then contact you and pretend to be buying,” said Hartley.
According to Hartley, the advertiser will then agree to a deposit and or full cash amount for the advertised goods to be released.
“Scammers somehow manage to send a fake confirmation, given the account with reference number, the ‘buyers’ name and reference. All look very legit.
“As soon as the goods are sent or delivered, the payment disappears from the seller’s bank account.”
Such an incident occurred in Delmas and came to the attention of Streeknuus.
In this case, the victim advertised his vehicle, a BMW, as for sale for the amount of R60 000. The ‘seller and buyer’ agreed to meet in a public space in Delmas.
The scammer introduced himself to the victim, inspected the vehicle and agreed to pay an amount of R56 000 for the said vehicle.
The victim provided his banking details and received a payment confirmation on his cellphone.
ALSO READ: Pastor from Standerton waits 13 years for illegal occupants to be evicted
The scammer went off with the vehicle and when the victim went to check on his bank account again, the deposit did not reflect.
“Fake payment notifications have been with us for many years, but yet the public still falls for this type of scamming,” said Hartley.
Hartley urged the public to be very cautious of transactions whereby money is deposited into your account and the seemingly legit ‘notification sms/email’ that goes with it.
She advised to log into your online banking app or bank’s website to verify the payment and also call their bank to make sure that the money does indeed reflect before releasing any goods.
