Black Friday is almost upon us and retailers will be offering shoppers attractive deals – some which will be difficult to resist. Due to COVID, online shopping has become more popular and that means extra opportunities for fraudsters to earn some extra income. The online shopping trend has been noticed globally and therefore Phishield recommends that shoppers exercise caution before parting with their hard-earned money.

Before entering your credit card details for that big screen TV that has been reduced by 40%, take note of the following tips to avoid becoming another victim of online fraud:

Fraudsters set up bogus website offerings or social media adverts with specials for holiday accommodation and/or air tickets. The victim then contacts the fraudster who is assumed to be a professional and the price appears to be cheap. The victim then makes a purchase using their credit card details or making and EFT thinking they are buying from a genuine person or company. The purchase goes through but the victim never receives the goods as the company/person was fake. Sometimes the fraudsters then have access to customer’s bank details and can use these fraudulently and could also include stealing the identity of the victim.

Comment seen recently from a Phishield client on social media in relation to a person who had been scammed by an “agent” claiming to represent various hotels in South Africa:

“Check if you don’t have Phishield insurance on your home insurance it actually covers you from cyber fraud, gumtree and holiday scams. I was able to claim after being scammed by an online store.”

Its great to see that clients are recognising the value of the Funds Protect product!

Mrs Smith, like many South Africans, was feeling the financial pressure due to loss of her income due to COVID. She applied for a personal loan through a loan company with a simple application process on their webpage. The company offered an attractive interest rate of 5% and a 3 year repayment plan. The “loan” was approved shortly after applying however, one of the conditions was to pay a “legal fee” before the funds could be released to her account. Mrs Smith, in desperation, made payment of the fees to a bank account held with an “international bank” who held a South African bank account with one of the major banks. However, after Mrs Smith made her first payment, she received constant emails and documents from the “international bank” to make various payments into various account numbers and banks for them to release the loan to her. Mrs Smith contacted her bank to confirm if the bank she had to make these payments to was indeed a trustworthy bank. Her bank confirmed that this is an approved bank as the name used was very similar to that of a recognised banking institution. Mrs Smith received a further request for additional fees to be paid. After adding up the payments made, she realised that she paid them close to the loan amount she applied for and no longer wanted the loan. She requested to cancel the application and refund her money paid, however, they requested for a fee to refund her the monies. Mrs Smith discovered that she had been scammed.

Mrs Smith was unable to recover any of her funds but because she had a Phishield Funds Protect Personal Policy, she was able to recover part of her loss.