I was defrauded of RMB 1.54 million when I bought milk on Douyin

Fraud syndicates are pervasive. When it comes to online shopping fraud, they often take advantage of popular product sales. For example, during the Double Eleven Shopping Festival this year, fraud syndicates launched fake ultra-low-price products. A woman surnamed Xiao from the south saw a low-price milk advertisement on Douyin and contacted the seller to buy it. Unexpectedly, the seller claimed that her account was frozen because of an operation error. She was defrauded out of NT$1.54 million within a few days. The police remind that if online shopping requires private transactions or claims that there is an abnormality in the account, it may be a fraud trap.

In the middle of last month, Ms. Xiao saw an advertisement selling milk from a major manufacturer on Douyin. The other party claimed that the original price of a box of long-lasting milk was 24 yuan, about 270 to 450 yuan. Now she buys two boxes, buy one and get one free, for only 269 yuan, which converts to only about 5 yuan per bottle. The price was six yuan, far lower than the average market price of 11 to 18 yuan per bottle. Ms. Xiao was excited and contacted the seller named "Haokang Life Store" through LINE, and the other party guided her to the Shopee shopping platform for transactions.

When Ms. Xiao was preparing to check out, the seller claimed that her operating steps were wrong, which caused her bank account to be frozen. At this time, the fake customer service required Ms. Xiao to pay a deposit of exactly the same amount as the account balance in order to unfreeze it, otherwise she would face serious consequences. Under the dual pressure of panic and anxiety, Ms. Xiao lost her judgment in verification and could only follow the gangster's instructions to raise money everywhere.

Following the instructions of the scam group, Ms. Xiao personally went to the high-speed rail station with cash of up to 1.47 million yuan, stuffed the huge sum of money into the high-speed rail "OWLocker smart locker", and then transferred 70,000 yuan through online banking. After she sent a total of 1.54 million yuan, the other party immediately lost contact. Ms. Xiao was shocked to have been defrauded and called the 165 anti-fraud hotline to report the case for help.

The Criminal Police Department reminds that gangsters often take advantage of popular online shopping periods to defraud, and the public must remember the three principles of not conducting private transactions, not clicking on unknown links, and not depositing property according to instructions. As long as the seller asks to leave the official platform to contact privately, or claims to freeze the account, or even asks to go to the station locker to deposit cash, it is definitely a scam. Consumers should choose official platforms with good reputation when shopping. If they feel suspicious, they should hang up immediately and call 165 or 110 hotline for verification, and protect their wallets.