People get toy phones instead of cell phones

Scams were part of many accounts on social media that are fooling the buyers

BALAKOT: Swindlers are cheating simple folks of Balakot in the name of ‘online shopping’, a new-fangled notion for the otherwise urban communities of Balakot.

“I paid for a cell phone but got a few rupees worth of toy in the parcel delivered by a courier company,” an incensed buyer told Daily Express.

Other people in the town also told Daily Express that they were lured to buy cell phones from a particular website through social media. These scams were, in fact, part of many accounts on social media that are fooling the buyers.



Victims of online shopping scam say the courier service riders give the parcel only after taking full payment. But once the packet is opened, the victim realises there is just a toy inside. Online fraud victims have appealed to authorities concerned to take notice of the situation.

The FIA’s National Response Centre for Cyber Crimes deals with online frauds, harassment and other such issues.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 21^st, 2018.