Receiving a notice that you have been lucky enough to win an electronic device is becoming commonplace. Some people take advantage of how nice it is to receive gifts for a birthday or for winning a prize draw.
This fraudulent strategy still works as bait in many cases, and in the end the user, instead of a gift, gets an unwanted charge.
The most commonly used trick is to impersonate well-known companies with a good reputation among users, such as Amazon. Let’s see how they do it.
The mechanism of fraudulent trickery
It all starts with an email or an advertisement that displays a web page, telling the recipient that he or she has won a prize. Usually, the supposed prize is a smartphone, television, computer or other electronic device for domestic use.
The people who set up these fraudulent campaigns go to great lengths to make their victims think that the prize is backed by a well-known company such as Amazon. And to achieve this they have no qualms about using their corporate name or logo.
The first thing they do is ask a simple survey-like question, and then ask the victim what prize they would like to receive. They then ask for the victim’s personal details with the excuse that they can deliver the device to the victim’s home. At this point the victim is informed that the delivery of the gift or prize is not free, and that it has a cost, which is not usually high.
It is usually at this point that the delivery of the prize has an associated cost, usually quite small. Sometimes you may see in the small print an information warning that this is not a prize offered by the company indicated in the e-mail, but a possible case of a scam or an “offer” to subscribe to services of dubious usefulness.
But if the recipient of the message does not notice these details, they may end up providing all the data requested, including their credit card details. From this point on, they will begin to periodically make charges in their name, and the user will realise the fraud when they do not receive the prize.
The steps to take in case of being scammed
These types of fraudulent campaigns are nothing new: they have been around for several years. But there are still users who fall into the trap and provide their credit card details. The consequences are, as mentioned above, that their credit card is periodically charged an amount of money, and sometimes this can go unnoticed by the person being scammed.
Once again, prevention is essential, and when you receive an e-mail with these characteristics, you should check the small print. Sometimes there are also telephone numbers or email addresses for contacting the company associated with the supposed “prize” or “gift”, and the first thing to do is to verify that it is not a scam. In any case, it is preferable to verify it by e-mail, since the telephone number may belong to another country or have a special rate.
There are also cases in which the e-mail provides information about both the campaign and the company that is promoting it. It is worth knowing that behind these sweepstakes presented as false prizes, there are often companies that operate thanks to a legal loophole that can be denounced according to the legislation in force in each country.
Hence the importance of reviewing the terms and conditions, as well as knowing the company behind these campaigns and the conditions under which the card will be charged, in order to be able to make the appropriate claim.
The problem is that this contact information is not always available. And sometimes, even if it is available, the company may not respond to requests for refunds and cancellation of the amount charged until the claim is made.
The most extreme cases
If the last case mentioned above occurs, you should contact the credit card issuer where the charges are being made. All banks and card issuers have insurance policies and procedures for dealing with these cases.
In order for them to be able to do this effectively, you must provide them with everything from the e-mail received communicating the alleged prize to the totality of the charges made on the card. If possible, also provide screenshots showing the data requested in the fraudulent e-mail and the terms and conditions.
If, even if all the above information is provided, the entity does not take charge of the money charged, the associated credit card should be cancelled and a police report should be filed. In this case, you should also provide as much information as possible to facilitate the investigation and verify whether it is a case of fraud.