It’s one of the biggest festivals next week and everyone is preparing to celebrate it in their own way. This is actually the most dangerous times because some irresponsible people are lurking for the prey among the desperate. With the event mentioned, this is a scam revolving around Chinese snacks, Bak Kwa.

Across the Tebrau Straits, there are few cases of scam revolving the Chinese snacks on Facebook. According to Singapore’s The Straits Times, the police said that the victims found out that they have been scammed when they did not receive the snack and the seller became uncontactable. The scams involve the sale of “Hock Moon Hiong”, a Malaysian based distributor.

The modus operandi is very basic. The scammers would post advertisements on Facebook which claimed they were selling the particular Bak Kwa in Singapore. The victims were then required to place orders through Facebook and make the full payment through PayNow or bank transfer.

Going deeper, Hock Moon Hiong is a dried meats distributor based in Malaysia and it has NO physical outlets in Singapore. The official website of the brand has stated that all of the products are already out of stock but customers still can buy them at physical stores.

The police of Singapore have urged the Singaporeans to be more cautious when shopping online which includes buying only from authorised and reputable sellers, checking existing customer reviews and ratings to verify sellers’ profiles as well to insist on cash on delivery when purchasing from online classified advertisements. The police also added that only meat products from approved sources can be imported or brought into the country.

Yesterday, we already talked about the scam which involves a Sarawakian woman and costs her thousands of Ringgit. It doesn’t matter how much the loss but this cybercrime should be put to the end. Always be cautious and if you sense something wrong, ignore or report the occasion to the authorities.

Stay safe!