NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Police are urging the public to be aware of recent fraud trends and to be cautious about their social media and online activity, as the information can be exploited by fraudsters.
The advisory on fraud trends by the Financial Crimes Investigation Branch released yesterday comes on the heels of a Central Bank report which noted that instances of fraud relative to cheques, debit, and credit cards ‘tripled’ during the pandemic.
According to police, fraudsters have been making contact with potential victims usually through social media advertising products (vehicles, boats, etc.) and services (job searches, contracts, etc.).
“The fraudsters show photos and other documents to prove validity and authenticity and ask for the funds to be wired/deposited onto Webshop accounts. After the funds are deposited, contact is severed and efforts to reach the fraudster are fruitless,” the police advisory stated.
“Members of the public are advised to be aware of products offered online by persons who require funds to be deposited onto Webshop accounts. Legitimate businesses do not operate their finances via those means.”
Police note that fraudsters have also been soliciting funds from foreign nationals for various applicant services (work permits, residency permits, account openings etc.).
“Due to language barriers, oftentimes Foreign Nationals are not comfortable with the application process,” the advisory continued.
“Fraudsters present themselves as facilitators offering to assist the victims in obtaining permits, however after receiving funds from victims, they disappear. Members of the public are advised that there are standard application procedures, many of them offered online for Government permits. There are also legitimate companies that offer their services to assist applicants in applying for those permits.”
Police also note that fraudsters, oftentimes from other jurisdictions, have been reaching out to unsuspecting victims via social media under the guise of friendship, companionship, and love.
The advisory read: “Expensive gifts are promised with the condition of some sort of fee for processing/customs. Victims eager for these gifts send funds, usually via money transfer services to jurisdictions outside of the Bahamas. If funds are sent, additional funds are usually requested again and again. Members of the public are advised to be cautious about their social media/online activity. Be careful with the amount and type of information that is posted by you, as this information can be utilized by fraudsters looking to exploit it. Furthermore, customs fees are never paid to an outside jurisdiction via money transfer.”
The Central Bank in its 2021 Annual Report and Financial Statements noted that the reported frequency of cheque, debit, and credit card fraud which increased during the pandemic, tripled to 8,337 from 2,638, however the associated value contracted by 49.3 percent to $2.6 million. Disaggregated by type, the number of debit card fraud cases accounted for 87.4 percent of the total, and 41.1 percent of the corresponding value.
“Credit card fraud represented 12.1 percent of total cases, as against 32 percent of overall value. As the use of cheques continues to taper, reported cheque fraud was 0.5 percent of total cases, although 27 percent of the total amounts,” the Central Bank noted.
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