’12 scams of Christmas’: Use social media responsibly to avoid being duped online

CEBU CITY, Philippines — With Christmas only a few days away, police in Central Visayas have appealed to the general public to be responsible social media users in order to stay safe against what has been notoriously called as the “12 scams of Christmas.”

These scams are commonly conducted by criminals during the holiday season when individuals are eager to spend their money to buy gifts, clothes, food, and other products online.

READ: Protect Yourself: How to Avoid Christmas Scams

12 scams of Christmas

According to Police Lieutenant Colonel Gerard Ace Pelare, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office Central Visayas (PRO-7), the “12 scams of Christmas” include fake shipping and delivery notifications, fake online charity solicitations, fake shopping websites, fake online sellers, and bogus “free trial” on goods and services.

The other types are: fake Christmas gift card scams, tech support scams, foreign exchange investment scams, loan scams, fake relative/friend scams, crypto investment scams, and dating scams.

As these scams are instigated through online sites or text messages during the holiday season, Pelare advised the public to watch out for these messages and to report them as junk in order to avoid being victimized by scammers.

READ: Online scammers steal P1 billion from Filipinos annually

Fake delivery notifications

“Ang advice sa Police Regional Office 7, kung makareceive mo og fake delivery notifications, report junk lang siya. Ayaw na lang patuli kay most probably, this is a fake notification unya mao ni gamiton sa mga scammer para makailad pud sa mga tawo,” he said.

(The advice of the Police Regional Office 7, if you can receive fake delivery notifications, report this as junk. Do not entertain it because most probably, this is a fake notification and this will be used by the scammer to dupe other persons.)

Because of the difficult nature in monitoring these activities on the internet, Pelare urged netizens to practice the responsible use of social media and to not fall for the promise of free products easily.

READ: P155 M lost to over 8,000 online scams from January – August 2023

Vigilance in clicking

“Ang atoa na lang, magbinantayon ang atong mga katawhan nga dili magpataka og click or patol sa mga notifications during the holidays.This is a matter of being responsible in using social media,” added Pelare.

(What we can do is to encourage the public to be more vigilant and that they will not just easily click or entertain notifications during the holidays. This is a matter of being responsible in using the social media.)

These scams also include messages instructing victims to open links or receive deliveries coming from people who claim to be friends or family.

READ: Online scam ‘worse’ than country’s drug problem — PAOCC official

Countercheck

Pelare said that it might be difficult to distinguish the validity of these messages but it would be important to be responsible.

He said that individuals must extend efforts to countercheck the content of the message and the identity of the person on the other end.

“Kung makabantay sila nga naay mga notification nagpadala, you better counter check it by calling or at least use another platform to check and verify if tinuod ba jud nga ang imong parente, relatives or friends are sending something. Otherwise, mabiktima ta ani and it’s very difficult to pursue these people online,” disclosed Pelare.

(If they can notice that there is a notification of someone delivering something, you better counter check it by calling or at least use another platform to check and verify if your relatives or friends are truly sending you something. Otherwise, you will become a victim of this and it’s very difficult to pursue these people online.)

Pelare further warned the public against falling for advertisements that are “too good to be true” and offers of free products which usually ignite the interest of many individuals.