Borrowing money online, woman was scammed out of 400 million VND

Recently, taking advantage of the fact that many people need to borrow money online to meet their living expenses, fraudsters have been impersonating bank officials to scam and steal money. With advertisements on social media promising convenient procedures and quick disbursement, many people have fallen into the trap of these scammers.

Recently, the Cau Giay District Police ( Hanoi ) investigated a fraud case involving the misappropriation of nearly 400 million VND using the aforementioned method. According to the investigation, on October 2nd, due to her need for an online loan, Ms. N (born in 1982, residing in Cau Giay, Hanoi) searched on social media and accessed a website offering bank loan information.

The woman was scammed out of 400 million VND after borrowing money online.

Ms. N messaged someone asking to borrow 150 million VND and was instructed to provide her information via a link.

After completing the application, the scammer informed her that the loan had been approved but could not be withdrawn due to an incorrect account number. To correct the error, she would need to pay 15 million VND. Ms. N transferred the money but still couldn't withdraw it. At this point, the scammer gave her several other reasons to transfer more money before the funds could be disbursed.

The total amount she transferred was nearly 400 million VND. Afterwards, Ms. N realized she had been scammed and reported the incident to the police.

The common tactic used by these individuals is to impersonate employees of large financial companies or banks to gain trust, then request borrowers to transfer a deposit or make a down payment of a certain amount. They lure people by promising quick loans, no collateral required, no credit checks, and very simple procedures.

However, after registration, they require borrowers to pay upfront service fees and processing fees, but then do not disburse the loan. The perpetrators also require users to download fake online lending apps designed to steal personal information, bank account numbers, and even credit card information.

Borrowers, after filling out all the necessary information, not only fail to receive the loan but also lose important information. Some online lending services initially promise low interest rates, but when it comes time to disburse the funds, the terms change, interest rates increase unexpectedly, and unreasonable penalty fees are added.

After borrowers fail to repay their debts, the scammers will threaten and psychologically terrorize them by making constant phone calls, sending threatening messages, and even slandering the borrowers' reputations on social media.

Following this information, the Cybersecurity Department ( Ministry of Information and Communications ) advises people to be cautious and vigilant about advertisements for unsecured loans that are rampant on social media.

You should only borrow money from reputable and licensed financial institutions and banks. Avoid lending apps and websites with unclear origins or no clear contact information. Before using any online lending service, thoroughly research the company, read reviews from other users, and check official websites or news sources to verify its legitimacy.

Absolutely do not follow instructions or transfer money to strangers. Do not provide sensitive personal information in any form. Do not access suspicious links. Absolutely do not share your bank account number, OTP code, password, or any other sensitive information.

If you suspect you have been scammed, you should immediately report it to the authorities or consumer protection organizations for timely assistance, resolution, and prevention.

Chi Hieu

Source