Facebook Marketplace a hotbed for scams warns Natwest
People doing their Christmas shopping online should beware of scammers on social media sites according to new Natwest data.
Natwest has exposed the top four sites being used by scammers in time for Black Friday, one of the busiest online shopping times of year. Facebook Marketplace came in first place with Instagram coming in second, eBay in third place and Gumtree fourth.
“Don’t let fake influencers or sellers steal your Christmas by sending them a payment for presents you will never receive,” warned Jason Costain, the head of fraud prevention for Natwest.
“It is the fraudsters’ favourite time of year, so make sure you’re on your guard when buying goods you’ve seen on sites like Facebook Marketplace and Instagram,” he added.
According to the data between the start of September and 22 November over 1,000 scams were reported on Facebook Marketplace. Instagram trailed in second place with 391 reports whilst 170 were reported on eBay and 153 on Gumtree.
Natwest warned that common scams on social networking sites often feature goods at heavily discounted prices with the seller asking buyers to pay by bank transfer before the goods are received.
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