Haj Committee of India issues warning against scammers

The Haj Committee of India has reported that scammers have been taking advantage of the upcoming Hajj to send fake messages on social media as a pretext for soliciting money.

Topics have included selection of pilgrims and the appointment of seasonal staff.

The Haj Committee stresses that any official circular will be available only on the official website, http://hajcommittee.gov.in/, and that it is not responsible for loss or damages that result from interacting with such messages.

It only has one account with the State Bank of India and another with the Union Bank of India, as reported in an official circular (PDF).

Ministry of Minority Affairs, India warns of Hajj scams

The Ministry of Minority Affairs, India has announced that scammers are publishing advertisements in print media implying that they have received Hajj 2017 quota allotments from the ministry.

The ministry said in a statement that 45,000 Hajj places have been allocated to 569 private tour operators (PTOs) for Hajj 2017. The list of the PTOs can be viewed online at its website, or at the national Hajj website.

"The general public and intending Hajj pilgrims desirous of availing the services of PTOs for Haj 2017 are hereby advised to check the above website and also make necessary enquiries and take precautions before engaging a PTO in order to avoid incidents of cheating by unscrupulous elements," the ministry said.

Interested?

View the list of approved PTOs and their allocations

AAOIFI warns of technology certification scams

The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) has warned that there are currently no technical systems, IT products or software with certification in any form from them. 

"AAOIFI has received complaints and enquiries from several parts of the world about the existence of entities and companies in the software development and technical systems or financial institutions which have products, claiming that their products or their systems are accredited or certified by AAOIFI. Therefore, it is our legitimate and legal duty to clarify that all of these claims are groundless and void," runs a statement on the AAOIFI website. 

The AAOIFI stresses that it is not permitted to any party to use AAOIFI’s logo, tradename or intellectual properties without written permission from the organisation, nor to indirectly give an impression that such products are approved or certified by AAOIFI.

Senator calls for investigation into Filipino passports given to non-Filipino Hajj pilgrims

Philippine Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri has raised concerns about non-Filipinos making use of the Philippines Hajj quota.

Zubiri recounts that 177 prospective Hajj pilgrims were stopped from departing the Philippines for KSA in August 18 because immigration officials discovered that they were carrying Philippine travel documents but could not speak Filipino or any Filipino dialect. "They were detained, and it was soon discovered that they were in fact not Filipinos, but Indonesian nationals who were carrying authentic, albeit fraudulently obtained, Philippine passports or travel documents," he said.

"The Indonesians are said to have paid as much as 131 million Indonesian rupiah, or about 460,000 pesos or US$10,000 to illegal travel agencies who facilitate their Hajj journey, which fee includes a Philippine passport*," he said.

Zubiri explained that KSA imposes a quota on Hajj pilgrims from each country. "Indonesia, having the largest Muslim population in the world, quickly fills up its quota. As such, Indonesians must wait up to 37 years before they can perform the Hajj*. Contrast that with the Philippines, where our Hajj quota is rarely filled," he said. 

"Some of our Filipino Muslim brothers reveal that the Philippine delegation to Mecca during Hajj always includes foreign nationals. Unscrupulous people have taken advantage of the situation by coming up with an elaborate scheme to provide fraudulent passports to prospective pilgrims."

Zubiri noted that non-Filipinos have been able to obtain Philippine passports, when Filipinos have had difficulty doing so. "This fraudulent scheme damages the integrity of our passports and casts doubt on its reliability," he said.

Zubiri also alluded to irregularities in the way the passports had been issued, noting that reports said the passports had been issued on the strength of paperwork from the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF)**. "Has the NCMF been so careless, or is their procedure so lax, that they issue certifications to non-Filipinos? Or are they more deeply involved in this fraudulent processing scheme, which has allegedly been institutionalised in the Commission?***" he asked.

"Likewise, other official documents such as birth certificates were allegedly issued by local civil registrars as part of the requirements to obtain the passports. I wish to stress that these are not fake, but genuine documents containing false information, which were issued by government offices."

Zubiri has called for Senate committees to conduct an investigation. "There is a real and urgent need to put a halt to this elaborate scheme, which involves government officers and employees who make a mockery of official processes, and in effect, prey on our Muslim brethren, as well as jeopardise and comprise our country's primary travel document, making it an easy accessory for the perpetration of crime and acts of terrorism," he said.

*http://www.rappler.com/world/regions/asia-pacific/indonesia/bahasa/englishedition/143949-pilgrims-philippine-passport-hajj

**http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/579422/news/pinoyabroad/dfa-suspends-issuance-of-hajj-passports-amid-probe-on-177-indonesians

***http://www.journal.com.ph/news/nation/p200-m-passport-scam-bared

Beware of cyber scams this Mother’s Day

Cybercriminals may inject malicious emails or fake surveys in the welter of activities around Mother’s Day, Symantec has warned.

At risk is personal information such as credit details and passwords, so think twice before answering those Perfect Mother’s Day Gift Based on Your Mum’s Personality surveys, the security vendor warns.

Cybercriminals are using social engineering which involves research and reconnaissance, reviewing social media profiles, and the online activity to craft personalised and convincing phishing emails*.

As retail brands promote their Mother’s Day gifts, cybercriminals may push out fake websites, emails or social posts offering attractive discounts but in reality, are luring users to click on malicious links. Cybercrime victims in Singapore lost an average of S$545 just last year**.

Some tips on online protection include:

· Think before you click – opening the wrong attachment can introduce malware to your system. Delete emails from senders you don’t know, and don’t click on attachments or links on suspicious-looking emails.

· If an offer sounds too good to be true, it just might be. Beware of the pitfalls of clicking on links from social media sites. Before clicking, hover the mouse over the link to see its destination. Only click on links that lead to reputable, official company pages.

· Don’t put off installing security software such as Norton Security and updating it regularly.

· What you share online puts you at risk for socially engineered attacks. Limit the amount of personal information shared on social networks and online, including login information, birth dates and pet names.

Interested?

Read the TechTrade Asia blog post about the Norton Cybersecurity Insights Report for Singapore

* http://go.symantec.com/istrpresskit
** Norton Cybersecurity Insights Report

posted from Bloggeroid

Event organiser of Seafood Expo Asia warns of scammers pretending to be associated with its shows

Source: Seafood Expo Asia website.

Organisers of Seafood Expo Asia are warning potential exhibitors of scammers approaching them for various exhibition-related projects such as paid directory listings. Victims may be locked into an automatically-renewed three-year contract for US$1,700 or more annually, they said.

Diversified Business Communications said that companies may claim to be associated with its events, which include Seafood Expo Asia and SPAR Japan, and offer to list an exhibitor in an exhibitor directory or a business guide, for example FAIRGuide, Expo-Guide, Construct Data Verlag, World Business Directory or World Business Guide. Other services may include travel arrangements and hotel rooms. 

The companies behind such projects are not associated in any fashion with Diversified Business Communications or any of our trade show events, the event organiser said online, providing an example of what the fraudulent solicitation can look like. "If you have participated in any of our exhibitions in previous years, or are due to participate in any of our events this year you are likely to be targeted," Diversified Business Communications stated on a web page warning of the scams. "Most of these companies are not official vendors for the expo and some are from non-existent companies."

The company went on to recommend contacts for unsolicited communications from possible scammers for US and EU businesses, but did not list any organisations for the Asia Pacific region. In cases such as these making a police report or going to a cyber security government agency within the country would be likely avenues to pursue.

Seafood Expo Asia, formerly the Asian Seafood Exposition, will return to Hong Kong from 6 to 8 September 2016. Over three days, seafood buyers can connect with exhibitors offering a variety of live, fresh, frozen and value-added seafood products and seafood-related services and equipment.

Interested?

Register

Refer to the official list of vendors for Seafood Expo Asia 

Check with Diversified Business Communications' customer service department about unofficial vendors at: +1 207 842 5504 or email customerservice at divcom.com.

Read the Suroor Asia blog post about a possible scam event site

Possible hoax site for the 15th Exhibition for members of the OIC

Source: Exhibition website.

The site http://islamicexpo-sa.com/, about the 15th Exhibition for members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), is said to be organised by the Islamic Centre for Development of Trade (ICDT), and to take place at the Riyadh Convention and Exhibition Centre in KSA from 22 to 26 May 2016.

The exhibition is said to be held concurrently with the 17th Private Sector Meeting for the OIC Member States in Riyadh from 22 to 23 May 2016, with the theme Unleash the Opportunities in Textile & Garments Industry in OIC Member States; also with the 15th Trade Fair of the OIC Countries and the 8th Forum for Businesswomen in Islamic Countries, which is also from 22 to 23 May.

The only problem is that the 17th Private Sector Meeting for the OIC Member States has already been held in Riyadh from 8 to 9 November 2015. There is a registration form for the same dates for download at a separate site. The 8th Forum for Businesswomen in Islamic Countries appears to have been held in Kampala, Uganda from 26 to 29 October 2015 - there is also a Facebook post about the event with the October dates from the Islamic Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture (ICCIA), organiser of the Forum.


The 15th Trade Fair of The OIC Member States does however seem to be slated for May 2016 in Riyadh but there is no link to the event on the OIC site.

Given the discrepancies in dates and the likelihood that anyone can copy and paste information from an existing event site into another and accept payment to register, it is best to check with the stated organisers - not the ones on the suspect site - to verify if the event is indeed genuine before paying. 

MAA Takaful warns customers against wide range of scams in its name

MAA Takaful in Malaysia is alerting the public that it has received complaints about Qaseh Qayyum Enterprise, which has fraudulently offered personal accident (PA) insurance to victims using MAA Takaful’s name and logo.

The company asks for a one-time payment for the product and another amount for renewal. A certificate with a logo and the wording “Provided by MAA Takaful” printed on it is given to the customer.

"MAA Takaful wishes to clarify that it does not have any sort of relationship whatsoever with the said company i.e. Qaseh Qayyum Enterprise and neither does it issue a Certificate Of Insurance bearing such logo. Members of the public are warned and reminded to be cautious and to not easily fall prey to such fraudulent activity," said the company in a statement. "MAA Takaful shall not be responsible for any liabilities related to the said fraudulent activity."

The company also issued a scam alert on its website about phone calls, email, SMS and other electronic communications that may have been made to members of the public on behalf of the company. 

"Please take note that there may have been recent cases involving organisations and/or individuals, falsely pretending to represent/be affiliated to MAA Takaful, (who try) to forcefully offer/sell/renew takaful products in exchange of payment via phone calls, email and SMS," stated MAA Takaful online. "Please bear in mind that MAA Takaful will never request your banking and/or credit card information through phone calls. Please remember that these activities are fraudulent and MAA Takaful is not involved in such activities."

Scams via phone, email or SMS often occur with well-known companies as there is a higher likelihood of the victim being a customer of such a company. Scammers typically inject a sense of urgency into their messages so that victims are unable to take a step back and really consider if the message is genuine.

Examples of scams provided by MAA Takaful include:

The Phone Scam
This occurs when a victim receives a phone call purportedly from or on behalf of bank/insurance/takaful company. The caller will ask for the victim’s banking or credit card information after forcefully offering to sell or renew takaful products in exchange of payment. The victim would probably fall for it after strong insistence from the scammers.

Editor's note: It is difficult to verify these days if the caller is genuine. If you want to renew or buy a product or service, it is best to arrange for the company to call you at a specific time, or to make the purchase or renewal directly online, if this is possible. Alternatively you can go in person to make the purchase or renewal instead. Tell the caller you need to go the company's office that day anyway and will buy or renew the product then.

Phishing
This occurs when spam emails are sent out requiring the victims to perform banking/credit card transactions and hence revealing their banking/credit card information. The victims basically are tricked to click on a bogus hyperlink provided in the email and subsequently are redirected to a fake login website that is identical to the original website.

Editor's note: Most companies do not make email requests that require their customers to go online. This is because too many scammers are making such requests. They'll usually post a letter if they need anything done. 

Check the email address of the sender, and also the address of the site in the email. Fake sites have different links from the real sites, and the email senders will not have official company email addresses. Some sites will send malicious software to your computer when you visit them, even if you don't click on anything, so it's best not to visit the site at all.

Sometimes the email will appear to have been sent by someone you know. Always check that the person did indeed send such a message.

Spamming
An unsolicited or junk email that tries to sell products or services by sending the email in bulk to any email addresses at once with the hope that a few people will respond.

Editor's note: Anyone who needs to try people at random in this manner may not have an effective product to sell. It's also possible that you end up paying for an item that never arrives. Such emails can also be used to phish (see above).

SMS Scam
This occurs when a person receives an SMS from an unknown phone number pretending to be from a well known organisation, claiming they have won rewards in the form of cash, luxury goods and etc. Subsequently, they are instructed to respond and follow the instruction given in the SMS by the scammers and as a result, revealing their banking/credit card information.

Editor's note: In another variation the victim is asked to pay administrative fees in order to receive the prize. The fees are usually much less than the value of the prize but still quite a sizeable amount. If you have won a prize there is usually no fee to pay. You can choose to call the organisation to confirm that you are indeed a prize winner. Do not call using numbers provided by the caller, as the calls may actually be to accomplices.

MAA Takaful has listed some ways of identifying a scam:

• The call received is from an unknown mobile phone number. 
• The email received belongs to unknown sources. 
• Requesting of personal/banking/credit card information via phone call/email/SMS. 
• Poor command of English by the caller/email sender/SMS sender. 
• Requesting of money at some stage. 
• The package offered is illogical and too good to be true. 
• Phone call that is insistent and threatening in nature. 

MAA Takaful further advises:

• Do not respond to any phone calls requesting your banking/credit card information. 
• Do not reveal your banking/credit card information to anyone. 
• Do not follow instructions from an unknown party to perform banking/credit card transactions. 

MAA Takaful also asks victims of scams using their company name to contact their Customer Care hotline at +603 6287 6666 or to email MAAWebAdmin@maa.my so that an investigation may be made. "At the same time, we would highly recommend you to lodge a police report and inform your bank and/or credit card issuer accordingly," the company said.

Read blogged scam warnings about Facebook in the Philippines, Qantas, and Singapore Airlines. More warnings for Singapore scams here.

Begging scams are most common during Ramadhan

There will always be people who try to take advantage of others. Such practices can be especially acute during the month of Ramadhan, a time when Muslims are enjoined to be charitable.

Some of the common scams seen around the world include:

People with faked wounds or bandages, or carrying children treated in the same way*, ***, ******. A variation is to have sedated children who look ill or starving*.

People who don't have their bank card or wallet with them and urgently need money because a relative is ill**,****,*****. A variation is for the scammer to ask for money to take a taxi because a relative is killed or injured.

People who pretend to be taken ill; the victim pays their medical bills**.

A family in a car who has run out of money for petrol and 'milk for the baby'***, ******. A variation is a mother with a child who doesn't have the money to get home****. Another variation involves a car with its hood up*****.

People who approach others, saying they do not have the money to perform hajj******.

*Described in India in 2011 here.
**Described in Oman in 2008 here; some of the scams are described in the comments.
***Described in UAE in 2011 here.
****Described in the US in 2012 by Snopes here.
*****Described in the US in by Scambusters here.
******Described in the UAE in 2014 here. It is an offence to beg in the UAE.

Scammers use professional methods to gain trust on halal certification

A fake halal certification syndicate has been on the prowl in rural Malaysia, offering halal logos to food manufacturers, a report in the Star on May 31 said.

The scammers hold seminars which cost between RM250 and RM600, then give halal certification at the end of the event, without inspecting any premises or checking the ingredients used in the food, the report said. 

In Malaysia, only JAKIM and the state religious affairs department may issue halal certification.