'Crying' because of being tricked into buying plane tickets and booking hotel rooms during Tet

Ticket sales websites that 'look very reputable'; clean and beautiful hotels that constantly update pictures of decorations to welcome guests... these are tricks that help scammers easily gain trust and even steal money from gullible customers who are eager for a spring trip at the beginning of the new year.

Enough sophisticated scam tricks

Sharing on his personal Tiktok page, Mr. NTT's group of 4 friends "cried" as they recounted the thorny journey of their trip to Da Lat at the beginning of the new year, where they were tricked into booking hotel rooms twice in a row. Accordingly, Mr. T. booked and checked in at a 5-star hotel in Da Lat last weekend. Changing his schedule, Mr. T. went on Facebook to consult and found a hotel that was also advertised as 5-star, very nice. Contacting via Fanpage, the hotel staff informed that there were still rooms available, but because there were many guests, they required payment in advance.

Fraudulent airline ticket and hotel bookings flourish during peak tourist season.

Because the Fanpage ran many loud advertisements with many likes and comments, Mr. NTT did not suspect anything, transferred money and was excited about the journey to experience a new place to stay. However, when the group of friends arrived at the above hotel, they were surprised to receive information that the hotel had no more rooms, that the Facebook page was fake. Quickly looking for another hotel, the group of friends continued to receive information that there were still rooms and asked to pay in advance. Learning from experience, the 4 people took a taxi to the place to ask for a room, but were informed by the hotel staff that there were no rooms left and also "did not know anything about the above Facebook page".

"We posted this video while we were in a taxi, wandering around looking for a hotel. This is peak season, everywhere is full, and we were scammed like this. It's too bad! The Facebook pages of those hotels and homestays are all advertised heavily, they look very trustworthy. Everyone remember to be careful so you don't lose money and end up in a helpless situation like us" - Mr. NTT shared.

Similarly, Mr. Tran Tien (living in Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City) also almost fell into the trap of a fraudulent hotel advertisement page in Da Lat with a similar trick. However, because the consultant insisted on transferring money to his personal account early, Mr. Tien became suspicious and searched for information again, only then did he find the official website of that villa and they reported that they were no longer accepting guests.

Not only accommodation establishments, Thanh Nien also received complaints from many people about fake airline ticket websites to scam and appropriate money.

"They set up the website vebaytet.com, I found out that there are 4 websites like that. After I booked a ticket on there, they would call me and give me my bank account number to transfer money. After transferring, they said the reason was that I had written "airline ticket payment" too much, only the content was the ticket code provided. Then, they asked me to transfer money one more time before returning the money I had transferred earlier, then beat around the bush, saying that if I didn't follow it, they wouldn't support a refund. The Tet tickets on there were also cheaper than usual, I bought 3 tickets, and lost nearly 6 million VND. But thinking about how they intentionally scammed me, I think this Tet they will probably collect a lot of money from people who want to go home" - Ms. TH (living in Ho Chi Minh City) recounted the story of being scammed.

Be on high alert to avoid "swallowing the bitter fruit"

Previously, Vietnam Airlines and authorities also recorded a number of cases of websites, organizations and individuals claiming to be agents of the airline.

Specifically, some websites have similar domain names, which can easily confuse customers, such as: vietnamairslines.com; vietnamaairlines.com; vietnamairlinesvn.com. These websites have similar addresses, which are difficult to distinguish from the official website of Vietnam Airlines (https://www.vietnamairlines.com) because only a few letters are different, so observant passengers can recognize them. Not to mention, the interface, colors, and logos of these websites are also designed similarly to the official website of Vietnam Airlines.

When customers complete procedures to buy air tickets, they will receive a booking code as a security deposit and a warning to pay immediately or the ticket will be canceled. After receiving the money, the subject does not issue a ticket and cuts off contact. Because the booking code has not been issued to the air ticket, it will automatically cancel after a period of time and the customer will only know about this when they arrive at the airport to check in.

Another form that must be mentioned is the fraudsters who impersonate Vietnam Airlines' level 1 ticket agents. The transactions are done online, after payment, customers only receive the booking code but the agent does not issue the ticket.

In particular, some subjects send emails or text messages informing customers that they have "won" a prize or received a discount on airline tickets. When customers access the attached link and provide information, the scammers will steal credit card information or request payment.

In addition to the above method, many scammers, after receiving money from customers, still issue tickets but then refund the tickets (paying a refund fee) and taking most of the money the buyer paid. More sophisticatedly, when customers receive tickets and call the airline to check, they are informed that the tickets have been issued for the correct itinerary. However, a few days later, the person who booked the ticket will send a request to the airline to request a refund. Thus, with each flight ticket, the scammer can sell it to many different people and the buyer will suffer losses, affecting the travel schedule.

Assessing the situation of airline ticket fraud that has been going on for many years, although the authorities have intervened, they have not been able to completely eliminate this phenomenon, Vietnam Airlines leaders said that these websites are not official sales channels or partners of Vietnam Airlines, passengers buying tickets from here will not have their rights guaranteed, may buy fake tickets, tickets with inflated prices...

Recently, Vietnam Airlines has sent a document requesting the authorities to handle websites that show signs of violations regarding: using logos, trademarks, images of Vietnam Airlines, copyright of website interface design, information disclosure; registering and using domain names that are identical/similar to the trademarks and trade names of Vietnam Airlines.

To avoid buying fake tickets or tickets with inflated prices during the upcoming Lunar New Year 2025, airlines recommend that customers buy tickets on the airline's website, mobile application, ticket office and official agent. Customers buying tickets on the website should pay special attention to accessing the correct official address of the airline or contact the hotline directly if they need answers or direct support related to booking and buying tickets. If you receive offers for air tickets that are too cheap compared to the airline's information, do not rush to book tickets but check again because it may be a trick of bad guys with the purpose of fraud.

Currently, Vietnam Airlines has only one official website, www.vietnamairlines.com. Contact information for ticket offices and a list of official agents of Vietnam Airlines are also updated on the website in the Agent section (at the bottom of the website). When purchasing tickets, customers need to request the seller to provide an invoice in accordance with regulations. This is an important document used to protect the rights of passengers.

According to thanhnien.vn

Source: https://baohanam.com.vn/du-lich/khoc-rong-vi-bi-lua-mua-ve-may-bay-dat-phong-khach-san-dip-tet-143318.html