Ms. Nguyen Thi Le Thanh, Director of the Khanh Hoa Provincial Department of Tourism, said that the department has sent a document to local tourism units requesting them to increase vigilance against the situation where many 4-5 star hotels in Nha Trang City are being targeted by fake fanpages used to scam and steal hotel room deposits from customers.
According to the Department of Tourism, most scammers pose as hotel and other service consultants. They enthusiastically advise and urge customers to transfer money. After the money is transferred, these scammers fail to provide the agreed-upon service. Customers only realize they've been scammed when they check and find their name missing from the system. The scammers then either stop answering calls or block communication.
The provincial Department of Tourism believes this is a sophisticated and systematic tactic, occurring repeatedly with many customers. "If tourists discover similar acts, they should report them to the authorities for timely action," Ms. Thanh said.
Ms. Nguyen Mong Tuong Ny, representative of Havana Nha Trang Hotel, said that recently the hotel has also discovered many malicious individuals impersonating the hotel, creating fake pages on social media and running advertisements. These individuals copy the hotel's content exactly and "extremely skillfully".
According to her, some fake pages often use hotel posts and change the phone number at the end; they ask guests to book through the fan page or only require a 50% deposit to build credibility.
"We tried posing as customers, contacting the fake websites to learn how they operate, and also posted warnings and guidance for customers on the official website," Ms. Ny said, adding that she had submitted a report to the Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa Tourism Association for appropriate action.
Most scammers impersonate well-known 4-5 star hotels and resorts in Khanh Hoa, located in prime locations near Tran Phu coastal road in Nha Trang City, such as Vinpearl Resort, Comodo, Melissa, Senia, and Havana. Hotels have posted warnings about the scams, but many fake websites run aggressive advertising campaigns, causing customers to be misled and scammed out of tens of millions of VND in room booking fees.
In mid-August, a female tourist from Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi , along with 11 friends, were scammed by a social media account named "Thao Cherry" into booking rooms in Nha Trang. This account frequently appeared on the front pages of various online groups and offered enthusiastic advice, so the female tourist decided to transfer 5 million VND to reserve the rooms.
Later, "Thảo Cherry" said that if the full amount wasn't paid, the hotel wouldn't issue the room code, and demanded an additional transfer of over 8 million VND. After transferring the money, the female tourist was unable to contact "Thảo Cherry". Currently, the Ninh Hoa Town Police have recorded nearly 100 tourists accusing a person named "Thảo Cherry" of fraud and embezzlement using the above method.
According to the police, Thảo Cherry's real name is Nguyễn Thị Thu Thảo, 30 years old, residing in Ninh Xuân commune, Ninh Hòa town. Initial verification shows that she is not present in the locality and is temporarily residing in Tân Bình district, Ho Chi Minh City.
Because the incidents occurred online, and Thao was in Ho Chi Minh City at the time the scams were carried out, the investigating agency instructed the victims to file complaints with the Ho Chi Minh City police.
VN (according to VnExpress)Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/nhieu-khach-bi-lua-dao-tien-dat-phong-o-nha-trang-394362.html
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