By Zaki Salleh
IPOH: Just because of a small oversight, a private sector employee suffered a loss of approximately RM1,500 after falling victim to a scammer through a WhatsApp message.
It all started when he received an order from his wife to check an address for an online purchase.
This happened after his wife informed him that she couldn’t access the link.
The man, who wished to be known as Mazlan, said that due to being busy at work, he only glanced at the WhatsApp message once and clicked on the link without any suspicion.
He said, after opening the link, he proceeded to fill in his residential address as requested.
“At first, I asked my wife and she confirmed that I needed to fill in our home address. Because we had made online purchases before, I thought it was a normal process.
“The link I received used the Pos Malaysia logo, so I thought maybe it was Pos Malaysia checking the recipient’s address.
“After filling in the address and sending it, the link led to a payment gateway.
“It asked for my bank card number and identification card number for verification. Initially, I was surprised and even asked a colleague in the office about this procedure.
“But, without any suspicion, I provided the details. It stated a fee of only RM1.37 for return shipping.
“I thought it was okay because the fee was low, so I clicked and went back to finish my work in the office,” he said.
However, Mazlan said that after confirming the online payment through the bank link, he began to feel suspicious and captured the payment screen.
His suspicions were confirmed when he checked his bank account and found that RM1,500 had been deducted by the scammer.
“I was shocked when it stated a purchase for souvenir items. It’s clear! This is the work of a scammer.
“After checking on Pos Malaysia’s Facebook page, there were warnings to be cautious of scammers using the name of Pos Malaysia.
“I regret not double-checking first. If I had read the scammer’s link again, the wording clearly didn’t come from Pos Malaysia,” he said.
Therefore, Mazlan advises the public to be cautious and not fall victim to scams like he did.
