Police warn of job scams involving SMSes spoofing Lazada

SINGAPORE: The police on Wednesday (May 11) warned about job scams involving unsolicited spoofed messages purportedly sent by Lazada offering job opportunities.

There have been at least 50 victims since May, with losses amounting to at least S$430,000, said the police.

"In these cases, victims would receive unsolicited messages advertising highly paid affiliate marketing related jobs via SMS, WhatsApp or social media platforms," the police said in the news release on Wednesday.

The fake SMSes will be shown in the same conversation as the authentic messages from the e-commerce platform, as the scammer had spoofed the platform's number or name, said the police.

The scammers would tell victims that commissions would be given upon the completion of simple tasks online.

They would then be directed to provide their personal details when they sign up for an account on a spoofed website resembling Lazada's. After doing so, they would be asked to complete tasks in order to earn commissions.

The jobs would often begin with simple tasks such as liking products on the websites, where victims would earn S$2 commission for each like, said the police.

Victims would be convinced that it was a legitimate job opportunity after being able to withdraw the initial commissions earned.

They will then be promised commissions of up to 30 per cent if they were to purchase the items on the spoofed website. To make the purchase, the victims would have to transfer money to bank accounts belonging to "unknown individuals" for credit in their accounts.

"These victims would eventually discover that they had been scammed when they were unable to withdraw from their accounts, or when the spoofed Lazada website has been removed," said the police.

A spokesperson from Lazada said that the e-commerce platform is aware of scammers misusing their name. 

"The spoofed messages are disguised to look like the real thing, but Lazada does not make job offers on unofficial channels," Lazada said.

"We are working closely with Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) in our fight against scammers and are on the SMS SenderID Protection Registry (SSIR) as part of our protective measures to safeguard customers, and ensure a safe shopping experience for everyone."

SCAM PREVENTION MEASURES

The police reminded people that Lazada does not conduct recruitment via SMS, WhatsApp or Telegram chats. It will also never direct users to a third-party website or request personal details to sign up for jobs.

People should not accept dubious job offers that promise "lucrative returns for minimal effort", said the police, adding that people should never download applications from unverified sources.

They should also never send money to anyone whom they do not know or have not met in person before.