Posting an ad online looking for a pet, unexpectedly becoming the 'prey' of scammers

Recently, the Dallas Animal Rescue Center (Texas, USA) issued a warning about a group of people impersonating the center's communication channel on social networking platforms, proactively approaching victims who have lost pets to steal their property.

Initially, the subjects created accounts with the rescue center's logo as their profile picture, joined groups and fanpages to find lost pets, and actively commented on posts.

After approaching the victim, the subjects claimed to be members of the "emergency rescue team" and informed that the victim's pet had an accident and was in critical condition, and needed to quickly carry out procedures to perform surgery.

Taking advantage of the psychology of people looking for lost pets, bad guys have carried out fraud methods, through the support of artificial intelligence.

To take advantage of the victims' trust, the subjects use artificial intelligence to create images of the victims' pets in a hospital setting, on a hospital bed or operating table, then present hospital fees and ask the victims to transfer money.

After the victim successfully transfers money, the subjects will immediately turn off the phone and cut off contact with the victim on all platforms.

Faced with the current scams, the Department of Information Security ( Ministry of Information and Communications ) recommends that people be vigilant when encountering similar tricks as above. People need to stay calm and carefully verify information through phone numbers or official information portals.

Absolutely do not provide sensitive information, personal data or make money transfers without verifying the identity and work unit of the subject.

When detecting suspicious signs, people need to quickly report the incident to the police and authorities to promptly investigate and track down the subject, preventing fraudulent behavior.

Chi Hieu

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/len-mang-dang-tin-tim-vat-nuoi-bat-ngo-thanh-con-moi-cua-nhung-ke-lua-dao-ar903238.html