PressSplit
The police are once again warning people to be “data-efficient in online trading”. The reason is a scam that a Lüdenscheid resident fell victim to this week.
Lüdenscheid – A Lüdenscheid wanted to sell his car and advertised the car on a large online market. Shortly afterwards, an interested party contacted him and announced that he wanted to buy the car sight unseen. The man from Lüdenscheid then sent the supposed buyer his bank account number and a photo of his ID card.
But two days later, the man from Lüdenscheid looked at his Schufa account and saw that someone had made credit inquiries in his name – and reported it to the police.
“Be careful when sending ID photos to strangers!”
The investigators are issuing a strong warning against this scam. A statement states: “If prospective buyers want to purchase a high-quality product without ever having inspected it in person, sellers should be extremely suspicious. Fraudsters also use phone calls to steal money.
The police warn of a scam on the online market (symbolic image). © Michael Gstettenbauer/ Imago
In the past, sellers have often been tricked into paying transport costs in advance to a supposed shipping company. But the people who picked up the goods never showed up, the alleged buyer never got in touch again, and the money ended up in a bank account that was opened under a false name and then immediately emptied.
Bank cards can be blocked and transfers can be stopped under certain circumstances. This way, damage can be limited. However, if you give away copies of your ID, you will never get them back.”
Instead of coveted tickets for a “Böhse Onkelz” concert or free tickets for the Bautz Festival at Nattenberg to get, Two Lüdenscheiders suffered losses and annoyances. They too have fallen victim to a scam.
