A fraud investigator at the Table View police station says they receive about 10 to 20 fraud dockets per day (depending on the time of the month) from incidents within the precinct, Milnerton and surrounding areas.
The top two fraud incidents are animal- and investment fraud, Sgt Warda Christians, a fraud investigator at the Table View police station pointed out.
Recent reports reveal this concerning fraud trend is spiking to unprecedented levels. From sophisticated cyber scams to traditional confidence tricks, deceitful tactics have proliferated, leaving a trail of financial loss, reputational damage, and emotional distress in their wake.
“The community should be vigilant when purchasing anything online, especially via Facebook marketplace,” Christians warns, saying these trends are not only subject to the Table View area but happen everywhere.
“For example, a victim will see a particular car or house, make a deposit to secure his or her spot, only to find out later that not one existed. Either the it is a stolen car or the house is not up for lease,” she says.
Christians pointed out that they work with all the major banks when investigating fraud cases, but it takes longer than usually expected.
“The banks will freeze the alleged perpetrators funds, but only for two weeks. In most cases, our investigation is not completed within this time frame,” she says.
As fraud is running rampant all over the country, Table View police spokesperson Capt Adriana Chandler emphasises the importance of raising awareness of fraud.
“Especially to those who do not understand the extent of fraud and how people lose large amounts of money,” she says.
Tygerburger spoke to a victim of animal fraud, Leona Fredericks after a picture of a French bulldog won her heart.
She made contact with the apparent owner of the dog a year ago while searching online for this specific breed.
“The picture of the dog pulled me in,” said Fredericks, who was prepared to meet the owner for a cash exchange.
“The questions made me feel it was legit and that they cared about where their puppy goes.”
After emails and phone calls, signs surfaced that something just wasn’t right.
The apparent owner first insisted upon a deposit, then wouldn’t communicate on the phone and was hesitant to meet in person.
Fredericks later learned the puppy, which she had hoped to make part of her family, wasn’t real.
Christians says this is more common than one thinks – they see animal fraud all the time. She advises the community to avoid going online and contact owners.
“If you really want to adopt an animal, rather call the SPCA or a animal shelter,” she says.
Rental, romance scams
In an interview last Thursday, Christians told TygerBurger that fraudsters will advertise what you’re looking for at a great price.
“When you inquire about the product, it’s suddenly unavailable but a higher-priced product is offered as a replacement. Similar to bait-and-switch items, non-delivery scams involve a seller who lists an item that they aren’t planning on actually shipping to buyers. Instead of switching the item for something more expensive or lower quality at the last minute (as with bait-and-switch), non-delivery scams attempt to take payment without sending the item out. This allows the perpetrator to engage multiple buyers with a single item or sometimes no item to sell at all,” she says.
Christians says rental scams on Facebook Marketplace involve fake listings for apartments, properties, boats, or power tools that ask shoppers for upfront payments or deposits.
“In the case of living spaces, some of these listings ask customers to fill out fake lease agreements or applications with the hope of attaining valuable personal information like social security numbers. Once the victim has submitted a deposit and/or application, the scammer disappears. If the seller will only accept payment methods that are untraceable — such as advance cash payments — this is a huge red flag that they are a scammer.”
Christians also warned of romance scams which occur when scammers create fake personas and then reach out to you over Facebook Messenger, dating sites, or other social media platforms and try to start a romantic relationship.
“These scams take days or even weeks to play out, but the consequences can be devastating.”
How to avoid being scammed
While getting scammed is always possible, there are plenty of ways to keep yourself safe. The following reminders can act like a checklist for every transaction:
- Regularly review your bank and credit card statements.
- Avoid anything that seems too good to be true.
- Check the seller’s badges and reviews.
- Communicate strictly on Facebook Messenger.
- Use two-factor authentication with your Facebook page.
- Use a trusted payment method that protects you like cash, PayPal, or Facebook Checkout.
- Double-check the other person’s identity.
- Meet in a populated, well-lit space.
- Bring everything you need to make sure you’re getting a working product.
- Keep your computers and mobile devices up to date.
- Set strong passwords.
- Watch out for phishing scams. Phishing scams use fraudulent emails and websites to trick users into disclosing private account or login information. Do not click on links or open any attachments or pop-up screens from sources you are not familiar with.
- Keep personal information personal. Hackers can use social media profiles to figure out your passwords and answer those security questions in the password reset tools. Lock down your privacy settings and avoid posting things like birthdays, addresses, mother’s maiden name, etc.
