<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/feb/07/australian-losses-to-online-marketplace-increase-as-scams-become-increasingly-sophisticated>
"Wayne Draper and his wife wanted a puppy. When they came across pictures of a
new bulldog on Facebook, they instantly fell in love.
The Facebook page it was advertised on had been operating since January 2021,
and had seemed to cycle for several litters of puppies. They promised their
pups were ANKC (Australian National Kennel Council)-registered, wormed and had
a full veterinary health check.
“We saw the video and photos, we looked into it, and it seemed legitimate,”
Draper said.
He was asked to fill out a questionnaire, to check if the couple were suitable.
Once they were approved, they sent $1,000 to the business to secure the puppy.
“Then the communication slowed down – he said his daughter was in the hospital
with a critical injury,” Draper said.
“I said: ‘I’ll bring the rest, $1,500, on the Friday or Saturday when we pick
up the dog and go from there.’”
When the business asked for an extra $500 to be transferred through Bitcoin,
Draper realised it was a scam. He kept communicating, hoping to get some of the
money back.
“I was trying anything to get some money. I couldn’t believe it. I learnt a big
lesson from it. Never purchase a puppy like that.”
Eventually, the page stopped responding. On 19 January, he reported it to
Facebook – but it is still active."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
