Hạ Long Bay authorities try to help the scammed South African couple. - VNA/VNS PhotoViet Nam News HẠ LONG — Hạ Long Bay authorities said on Friday they had offered a free cruise to a newlywed South African couple who were scammed by an online tour booking fraud. Hạ Long Bay Management Board deputy chairman Phạm Đình Huỳnh said the foreign couple arrived in Tuần Châu Port in the northern Quảng Ninh Province on Thursday afternoon, only to realise that the overnight cruise they had booked on Hotels.com was a hoax. The port authorities reported the case immediately to the Hạ Long Bay Management Board. Huỳnh said the board arranged a free overnight tour for the couple, who were in Việt Nam for their honeymoon. This was the second recent case in which foreign tourists pre-booked fake tours of the bay, he said. — VNS … [Read more...] about Newlyweds offered free tour after booking scam
Online scam
Lax rules open doors for online fraud
Vietnam needs new policies to tighten management and penalties to improve the quality of the e-commerce market, Photo: Le Toan Vietnam’s authorised agencies have recently inspected Shopee Vietnam after various media outlets had reported on third-party vendors selling illegal toys on its e-commerce marketplace. The e-commerce website was accused of selling toys depicting a Chinese map violating Vietnam’s sovereignty. Shopee Vietnam was ordered to remove listings of the illegal toy map depicting the illegal nine-dash line that China has used to claim Vietnamese territory in the East Sea. However, Shopee is not the only e-commerce company that has caused trouble for customers with its lax management of vendors. Lazada.vn has also repeatedly been in hot water over the past few years, with numerous complaints from customers about used items, fake promotions, and wrong prices, among other issues. Information provided by the Vietnam Competition Authority (VCA) under the … [Read more...] about Lax rules open doors for online fraud
Vietnam hands over six wanted people to Chinese authorities
By Binh Minh  July 1, 2018 | 03:06 pm GMT+7 Police in Quang Ninh work with six Chinese nationals for alleged online scams. The six Chinese nationals, accused of online scams, are residents of China’s Hubei province. Police in the northern province of Quang Ninh announced on Saturday that they have handed over to Chinese authorities six alleged criminals. According to the police report, the six people, Li Hong Lin, 28, Zheng Jing,32, Yang Xiao Ming, 27, Zhang Chuan, 27, Luo Jie Jie, 26, and Yang Zhao, 26, were wanted by the Chinese police for carrying out online scams. All are residents of China’s Hubei Province. While arresting them, Quang Ninh police confiscated 36 cellphones, 200 fake IDs, 24 credit card swiping machines, and a few credit cards with Chinese letters. In April this year, Vietnam police had nabbed two Chinese criminals wanted by Interpol since 2007 in Khanh Hoa Province, central Vietnam. The number of Chinese tourists … [Read more...] about Vietnam hands over six wanted people to Chinese authorities
Local banks warn of online fraud
Local banks warn of online fraud A customer withdraws cash at an ATM - PHOTO: TL HCMC – Many local banks have repeatedly warned their customers about sophisticated hi-tech scams that could leave victims with little or no protection from their banks, Tien Phong newspaper reports. The Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) said in a notice that some of its customers have recently transferred money to unintended persons, after their customer emails were hacked. The scam goes like this. Thieves spy on emails sent between customers and their partners, and then illegally change bank details on transaction documents so that money could be sent abroad. Crooks are targeting small and medium-sized businesses which have low levels of security in their network management systems, or have not put in place sufficient regulations on safe email usage. Following the money transfers, the victims have asked Vietcombank to retrieve their money from foreign banks, especially in … [Read more...] about Local banks warn of online fraud
Banks warn customers over online scamming
The Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) and the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) have issued official warnings to customers over online phishing scams. An user logs onto BIDV’s e-banking platform. - Photo thebank.vn Both banks have reported information theft through e-banking counterfeiting, with cardholders’ negligence taken advantage of to steal their personal information, card data and passwords by asking them to input these on a fake website programmed to resemble the banks’ authentic online platform. For example, two fake addresses were listed as homebank247.com/Bidv, or homebank247.com/Vietcombank. These fraud sites used forged interfaces mimicking the two banks’ real online banking services domains. Vietcombank and BIDV confirmed that their official registered websites are vietcombank.com.vn and bidv.com.vn, respectively. To protect personal information, Vietcombank … [Read more...] about Banks warn customers over online scamming
Online security concern raises as elders become more digital
But family members are increasingly worried that the older people are not taking necessary security precautions. According to a study by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International, the majority (84 percent) of users aged 55 and over are now accessing the internet at home several times a day and 44 percent are spending a minimum of 20 hours a week on the internet. Photo for illustration. Source: kienthuc.net.vn Indeed, as of the second half of last year, this age group owned an average of four connected devices per household, including two computers and two mobile devices. Despite the many benefits offered by these levels of connectivity, family members have concerns that their older relatives are not taking the necessary precautions to protect themselves when online, with 60 percent of people worried about the safety of their digitally connected elders. Forty four percent of internet users admitted their older relatives have suffered from online threats, falling victim … [Read more...] about Online security concern raises as elders become more digital
Concern for online security of older people not converting into care
People aged over 55 are also going digital, but concern for their online security is not converting into care. — VNS Photo Younger generations are spending a greater proportion of their lives online, but they are not the only ones: People aged over 55 are also becoming more digital. But family members are increasingly worried the older people are not taking necessary security precautions. According to a study by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International, the majority (84 per cent) of users aged 55 and over are now accessing the internet at home several times a day and 44 per cent are spending a minimum of 20 hours a week on the internet. Indeed, as of the second half of last year this age group owned an average of four connected devices per household, including two computers and two mobile devices. Despite the many benefits offered by these levels of connectivity, family members have concerns their older relatives are not taking the necessary precautions to protect themselves when … [Read more...] about Concern for online security of older people not converting into care
Vietnam’s former police chief under probe in multi-million-dollar gambling case
Vietnamese police opened a criminal investigation into a once top-ranking police official on Friday for his involvement in a massive online gambling ring that has seen dozens of arrests made in recent months, including a number of other big fish. Phan Van Vinh, former director of the General Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security, is being investigated for abuse of power on duty, said police from the northern province of Phu Tho. Police in Phu Tho uncovered the gambling ring after investigating a fraud case reported last May, in which a local was scammed out of VND55 million ($2,400) in mobile top-up cards. After being arrested, the scammer told police that he had redeemed all the cards for virtual currencies used in an online gambling card game. While investigating this claim, police uncovered a large online gambling ring run by two tech businessmen using two online games portals that resembled professional casinos. Investigators found the portals started operating in … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s former police chief under probe in multi-million-dollar gambling case
Vietnam agents warn against buying third-party air tickets booked with stolen credit cards
Purchasing an air ticket bearing totally legitimate and valid information from a third-party might be all it takes to turn your dream vacation into a nightmare. Nearly ten passengers have sent complaints to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper after being denied flying with Vietjet tickets that were properly booked with correct information after the bookings were found to have been purchased with stolen credit cards. Some ticket agents suggest that these disgruntled travelers are the victims of scammers who bought the tickets with stolen credit cards before reselling them at rock bottom prices. Denied flying In August 2017, Truong Thi Bao Trinh asked a ticket agent named Chu Hai Yen to book her a Saigon – Hanoi flight at the lowest possible price. Yen then made a request on a Facebook group for ticket sellers where she received an offer to transfer a Vietjet ticket for VND1.65 million (US$73) from Pham Thi Trang, a Ho Chi Minh City resident. The normal rate typically sits around VND2 … [Read more...] about Vietnam agents warn against buying third-party air tickets booked with stolen credit cards
Facebook, Twitter not fully complying with consumer rules: EU
The European Commission said Thursday that U.S. social media giants have made an effort to comply with EU consumer protection rules, but that Facebook and Twitter have not made all the required changes. "While Google's latest proposals appear to be in line with the requests made by consumer authorities, Facebook and, more significantly, Twitter, have only partially addressed important issues about their liability and about how users are informed of possible content removal or contract termination," the Commission, the EU's executive arm, said in a statement. The three major internet companies had published on Thursday the changes they are making to comply with the demands of European regulators, which must be implemented in all languages by spring. Some of those changes include having the right to withdraw from an online purchase, being able to lodge complaints in Europe rather than in California where the companies are based, and the platforms being responsible towards EU consumers … [Read more...] about Facebook, Twitter not fully complying with consumer rules: EU