Police sound the alarm about Songkran scammers

After last week almost 5,300 cases of fraudRoyal Thai Police urge people to be vigilant against online scammers during Songkran holidays.

According to Lt. Gen. Sompong Chingduang, special adviser, between April 2 and 8, 5,269 cases were reported, with a total loss to victims of 312.5 million baht. These cases included 2,600 online shopping scams, 719 job offers, 539 loan fraud, 286 online investment scams, and 276 call center scams.

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The special adviser warned that Internet shopping scams have been on the rise as Songkran-related products such as T-shirts or water guns are used to scam victims.

Lt. Gen. Sompong also advised citizens to beware of Ponzi schemes, where scammers lure victims into investing by promising huge returns, as well as loan scams, where criminals trick consumers into that they pay guarantees for non-existent loans. He urged people to make sure the other party is verified before making investments or transactions.

5,269 cases were reported, with a total loss to victims of 312.5 million baht.

Studies show that Generation Y and Generation Z are the most vulnerable to online scams due to the amount of time they spend online. Although Generation X and Baby Boomers are relatively spared, the latter have been shown to suffer the most damage in terms of value.

Furthermore, more than half of the victims take little or no action because they believe that the government’s prevention/management methods are not effective enough.