PublishedAugust 11, 2022, 07:00
In LuxembourgBeware of online sales scams
LUXEMBOURG – The number of scams has increased in 2021, in Luxembourg. Online scams are one of them. Faced with this increase, the police reminds us of some prevention advice.
Thierry* is selling his bike on the Internet. A potential customer contacts him to buy it, but offers to send an intermediary to recover the object, such as a delivery man, in exchange for a sum of money, or even bank details. Eventually, the money is then lost and the item remains unpaid.
This fictitious example illustrates a process that is far from isolated. Recently, several residents have fallen victim to such scams, police said. Unfortunately, this is only one method among many others, details the police, but the objective of the scammers always remains the same: to gain the trust of the sellers to obtain personal data and/or money transfers.
Complaints filed regularly
Faced with this resurgence of scams of all kinds, 1,558 new cases were listed by the prosecution in 2021, against 1,175 in 2020, the police recalled some prevention tips. It is recommended to always be wary of easy wins and free services. With profiles on social networks, it can be complicated to know who you are dealing with, verifying the identity of the correspondent is essential, also notes the police on its site.
The prosecution indicates for its part that complaints are regularly filed for this type of scam. However, it is impossible to know the number, the online scams being listed in the “scams” of all kinds of the public prosecutor’s office.