THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) warned the public against a scam luring their victims to shell out money for a supposed unclaimed package at the bureau.
Assistant Commissioner and concurrent spokesman Philip Vincent Maronilla issued the warning after receiving reports about the scam perpetrated by some unscrupulous individuals.
“Actually this is an old modus. Nonetheless, we have to keep on informing the public about this,” said Maronilla on Tuesday.
“Victims are duped to pay duties and taxes for the release of the package through money remittance or personal bank accounts,” he added.
Investigation showed that the scam is done through online, email, SMS and calls.
Scammers use dummies or fake accounts on social media, emails, text messages or phone calls to lure victims.
Some would even use the name of BOC officials.
Bogus receipts, tracking numbers of packages and other documents are also sent to the victims to make the transaction look legitimate.
The documents, Maronilla said, can be validated with the BOC or the nominated courier.
The scams can also be sophisticated at times, involving fake tracking website of the said courier/freight forwarder where victims would be asked to visit and see the status of the supposed parcel.
This can be verified with the Department of Trade and Industry through their website (https://dti.gov.ph/consumers/
