Reports indicate a significant rise in online scams and fraudulent activities, with victims across Fiji losing substantial sums of money through deceptive social media sales, dubious investment schemes, and failure to receive purchased goods. Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu has highlighted that many of these incidents could have been prevented with greater awareness and caution.
Tudravu pointed out that technology serves both as a tool for modern conveniences and as a medium for fraudulent activities. He urged the public to exercise extreme caution when engaging with social media platforms and emphasized the necessity of verifying online transactions to mitigate the risk of falling victim to fraud.
“The technology is coming to our source. Also, the technology is the medium for all these illegal activities that are coming in. It’s new to us, but we need to be aware of all these things that are incoming,” Tudravu stated.
Adding to this, Seema Shandil, Chief Executive of the Consumer Council of Fiji, explained that the rapid and viral nature of social media complicates the detection of scams. She noted that the environment encourages impulse purchases, which can easily bypass traditional vetting processes, making new entrants to e-commerce particularly vulnerable.
“It has become so common due to the hyper-fast viral nature of these platforms, and the emphasis on impulse purchases can outpace the vetting processes, exposing new participants in e-commerce to scams,” Shandil remarked.
As online scams continue to impose financial losses on Fijians, authorities stress that awareness, verification, and vigilance are crucial defenses against increasingly sophisticated fraud tactics prevalent on social media. By staying informed and cautious, individuals can better protect themselves from these scams and foster a safer online shopping environment.
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