With the ever increasing use of the Internet to get the best possible deal, and the convenience of shopping on line while everyone is busy around the holidays, the RCMP's F Division Commercial Crime Section is advising the public to use caution when online shopping this holiday season.
One of the top three mass marketing frauds in Saskatchewan continues to be the 'merchandise purchased but not received' scam. This involves buying items online through common classified ad websites. In these cases, the seller (fraudster) generally instructs the purchaser (victim) to send payment via a commercial money transfer service (which does not have buyer 'protection'). In the end, the seller never sends the item to the purchaser.
RCMP say if the transaction is determined to be fraudulent, victims will not likely recover your money.
Some signs a purchaser can watch for which indicate the transaction could be fraudulent include that the item is normally a high priced item but the selling price is unusually low, or that there is an urgency to sell the item quickly.
"Even when making online purchases from brand name companies, before you enter your personal and financial information, ensure the website is secure," says Cst. Tyler Buchanan, Mass Marketing Fraud Co-ordinator for the Saskatoon Office.
"You can tell a website is secure by looking at the website's address bar. Look for the closed padlock or a URL address that begins with https."
Another prevalent mass marketing fraud involves selling merchandise online. The seller (victim) places an item for sale listing a certain price. The buyer (fraudster) contacts the seller willing to purchase the merchandise, and eventually sends payment (usually in the form of a cheque/money order) for an amount exceeding the asking price, citing varying reasons for the "overpayment." The victim is instructed to send the extra money back to the fraudster usually through a commercial money transfer service, does so and later finds out that the cheque/money order is fraudulent.
In the end, the RCMP advised, ask yourself, is this deal too good to be true? If it sounds like it might be, then it probably is.
