Vietnamese police report that criminals impersonated Shopee to commit fraud

Yesterday, according to foreign media reports, the police in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, issued a warning to residents, reminding people to be aware of fraudulent means or fake websites in the form of deposits, such as Shopee, an e-commerce platform with a large number of customers.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Police, as social distancing measures are now being implemented in Ho Chi Minh City, people must shop on apps or e-commerce websites to ensure Covid-19 prevention and control safety. However, some criminals have forged e-commerce websites to deceive consumers and steal citizens' property.

The police revealed that these consumer scams are mainly carried out in the following ways. After knowing that people need to buy food, medical supplies and other necessities during social distancing, criminals infiltrate Zalo and Facebook residential groups and necessities trading communities. Then, they attract buyers by posting products for sale at prices below the market price and receive delivery to the customer's address.

The criminals kept urging the buyers to transfer the deposit in advance, saying that they wanted to "avoid the customer's warehouse from being overwhelmed and to ensure the best price for the order." However, after receiving the payment from the buyer, the criminals cut off contact and did not ship the goods as agreed. In some cases, the criminals even pretended to be delivery service personnel and called the customer to confirm the delivery address and time. The buyer "saw" the product being shipped and was worried about losing the goods, so he transferred the money to the criminals, but ultimately did not receive the goods.

In addition, criminals also impersonate e-commerce platforms to steal users' property by sending virtual orders, charging buyers or providing paid services. Usually, criminals use the messaging system on Shopee to send messages to consumers, including: "Shopee congratulates account xxx for receiving a cash gift card worth xxx million VND. Go to website xxx and select OK to confirm Shopee's payment account."

After consumers click on the above website link, they will provide online banking account login information including OTP code. At this time, criminals will directly log in to the official website of the bank system to obtain account access rights and embezzle the victim's funds.

Ho Chi Minh City police advise Shopee users to be cautious and carefully study information and promotions before clicking on links to visit web pages . If you click on a suspicious link, please delete the history on the website immediately to avoid information theft; at the same time, if you find that your property has been misappropriated, immediately contact the nearest police station and call the hotline of your bank account.

Vietnam

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