Under the epidemic, Hong Kong people started shopping online, but consumer scams also followed.
Recently, scammers have even used social platforms to fake money from merchants such as Sogo Department Store and Watsons. Consumers have not received the goods after payment, and it is difficult to pursue them.
In order to prevent another customer from being deceived, some of the merchants who have been pretended to be scammed, but believed that the fraud case would still have an impact on the online shopping merchants.
Yuan Haiwen, a spokesperson for the Democratic Party’s consumer rights policy, suggested that consumers should avoid using FPS when shopping online. He also pointed out that social platforms are responsible and should take action after receiving reports from consumers.
Ms. Deng bought durians on a special page in September this year, but when the goods were not received in the end, the account was blocked by the other party.
(Photo by Luo Junhao)
No goods received after payment on Facebook page
"It was the first time I thought, so I would try online shopping. I never thought I would be deceived." Miss Deng said.
When she saw the Facebook page in September this year, an advertisement for a special page selling durians appeared constantly.
After inquiring about the details, the other party repeatedly promoted the sale at a discounted price. In the end, Miss Deng paid more than 200 yuan for the purchase, but in the end she could not receive the goods, and the account was blocked by the other party: "I didn't think too much at the time or check the address of the store. I Once asked if the store had a business registration certificate, the other party only answered that it is not required for online business."
▼Ms. Deng talks with the seller▼
Ms. Deng’s example is a typical online consumer fraud. She recently opened a group to gather nearly 60 victims who have fallen into the online consumer fraud. Only recently, more scammers pretended to be a well-known shop and opened an online page to cheat. fiscal.
▼Sogo Department Store and Watsons issued a statement to clarify▼
Fake pages appearing as Sogo and Watsons being confessed
"I think there are at least ten and eight cases, because Sogo Department Store, Watsons, Yingfeng, Podang (seafood specialty store), etc., many more reputable stores have their addresses stolen." Afterwards, Ms. Deng and others The miserable owner notified the counterfeit store. Sogo Department Store, Watsons and other merchants issued statements in September and October respectively, clarifying that it has nothing to do with the fake pages.
Miss Deng recently opened the "Avengers" group to gather nearly 60 victims who have fallen into online consumer fraud. She said that she and other victims want the fraudsters to be held criminally responsible.
(Photo by Luo Junhao)
Ms. Deng pointed out that she and other victims hope that the scammers will be held criminally responsible. They continue to collect clues about the scammers and have already reported the incident to the police.
They also reported fake pages for fraudulent money to Facebook, but these pages did not disappear as a result.
Podang Seafood was pretended by scammers earlier. The founder Wen Qizong said that the scammers took the initiative to send private messages to customers who left messages on the live broadcast, and used their names and addresses.
(Photo by Zhang Haowei)
Scammers pretend to be serious merchants and take the initiative to promote private information
Podang seafood, which is mainly engaged in live shopping, was previously confessed by scammers. The founder Wen Qizong pointed out that about 10 people have been deceived: "The scammers take the initiative to privately inform customers who leave messages on the live broadcast, they will lie that they have long legs that day. Discounts for crabs or hairy crabs.” He said that the scammers used their names and addresses in the conversation, but the payment was not the company account, but the private account.
Wen Qizong pointed out that scammers often use seasonal seafood to attract consumers. The price is much lower than that of ordinary stores. It is 20 to 30% off the market price: "Take long-leg crabs as an example. A student can be flat for 100 to 120 yuan."
Merchants set up electronic wallets to prevent fraud
In order to prevent the recurrence of fraudulent confession, Wen Qizong said that the company has established an electronic wallet service in October, and customers need to deposit money into the company's account to store value, so as to prevent customers from making payments to the fraudulent account by mistake.
Wen Qizong believes that such consumer fraud will have an impact on traditional online shopping platforms.
(Photo by Zhang Haowei)
As a long-lived shopping platform, Wen Qizong believes that shops are highly transparent, and customers can check orders with the staff of the live broadcast at any time. The deception has little effect on them.
However, he believes that such scams still have an impact on traditional online shopping platforms: "Because consumers will worry about whether the goods are delivered and whether the goods meet the instructions after payment. Consumers are not able to receive the goods one hour late and are nervous Calling the customer service staff without reply may raise questions."
▼Conversations between other suffering masters and swindlers▼
Online shopping complaints soared under the epidemic
According to data provided by the Consumer Council, in 2018 and 2019, there were an average of more than 4,700 complaints about online shopping, but by 2020, when the new crown pneumonia epidemic broke out, related complaints soared by 1.7 times to more than 13,000.
In the first nine months of this year, the Consumer Council has also received 4,700 related complaints.
Yuan Haiwen: Avoid using FPS for online shopping
Yuan Haiwen, spokesman for the Democratic Party’s consumer rights policy, said that he believes that the epidemic has caused an upsurge in online shopping.
Many scammers promoted on social platforms, and then instructed consumers to pay with FPS, describing "the whole scam is very fast and it is impossible to guard against."
He pointed out that from time to time there are scammers who pretend to be serious about merchants, but believes that each case has slightly different methods and the collection account is not the same. It is difficult to conclude that a certain group of people is responsible for all fraud cases.
(Profile picture / Photo by Yu Junliang)
Yuan Haiwen suggested that consumers should try to avoid using FPS for online consumption: "Because it does not have a dispute transaction protection mechanism, the use of credit cards or Paypal will be more secure." He also said that social platforms are also responsible, such as receiving When reporting to consumers, action should be taken.
The Consumer Council reminds consumers that it is more difficult to verify the identity of the seller when shopping on social platforms or instant messaging programs. It may not be documented. It may be classified as a private transaction, and it will be more difficult to recover when something goes wrong. It is recommended to consider the transaction carefully. Ways, and patronize online stores with good reputation.
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