The Judiciary Police (PJ) said in a statement yesterday that over 10 residents reported receiving messages from fraudsters pretending to be the e-payment platform “Union Pay” on Sunday, which contained a link to a fraudulent website that harvested personal and credit card information, leading to the victims’ losses ranging from thousands to tens of thousands of patacas.
According to the statement, the scammers used technical means to alter the sender ID of the phishing messages to match the official Union Pay number, which victims mistakenly believed to be official. The messages purported that the victims’ loyalty points were going to expire to prompt them to click on the embedded link.
The victims were then taken to a fake website that could supposedly enable them to exchange points for gifts at a discounted price, the statement noted. However, upon entering a one-time verification, their credit card information was stolen, resulting in the losses, the statement said.
The Judiciary police urged members of the public to not just click on links within text messages but to verify the authenticity of the information through official channels when personal, credit card and bank information is required; and to seek assistance from the PJ’s Anti-fraud Enquiry Hotline on 8800 7777 or the Crime Report Hotline on 993 if one suspects scam.
This poster provided by the Judiciary Police (PJ) yesterday warns members of the public of the fake “Union Pay” phishing texts.
