Second-hand transaction online scams become more sophisticated… A man falsely accused of theft

A bizarre incident occurred when a man trying to buy a monitor through a second-hand transaction was suddenly labeled a 'thief.' The scam method exploiting 'non-face-to-face transactions' is becoming increasingly sophisticated, raising concerns for consumers.

On the 13th, Kyunghyang Shinmun reported the case of an individual, referred to as Mr. Lee, who suffered such a loss while attempting to purchase a monitor on a second-hand trading site last month. According to the report, Mr. Lee received a non-face-to-face transaction proposal from the seller, Mr. A, and after deeming the price appropriate, he accepted the offer.

Mr. A provided the password to an office located in Gangnam, Seoul, instructing Mr. Lee to visit the office, choose the desired monitor, and then transfer the payment to his account.

Mr. Lee had some doubts but considered it plausible due to the nature of non-face-to-face transactions and followed Mr. A’s instructions to visit the office.

Upon entering the office with the password provided by Mr. A and selecting the monitor, Mr. Lee subsequently transferred approximately 400,000 KRW to Mr. A's account. However, a few hours later, he received a summons from an investigator at the Gangnam Police Station.

It turned out that the actual company using the office had reported Mr. Lee for theft.

During this process, seller Mr. A had withdrawn from the second-hand site and cut off all contact. Mr. Lee explained the entire situation to the police and voluntarily submitted the purchased monitor.

The police plan to declare Mr. Lee 'not guilty' and drop the charges next week. Additionally, upon the recommendation of the investigating officer, Mr. Lee filed a complaint against Mr. A for fraud on the 1st, and the police are currently investigating the details of Mr. A's criminal actions.

Fraud exploiting non-face-to-face transactions has been frequently occurring on second-hand trading platforms lately.

Last month, the Michuhol Police in Incheon received a report of a victim who suffered a loss of about 4.95 million KRW while trying to conduct a transaction for an expensive smartphone through a second-hand trading app.

In this incident, the suspect deceived the victim by saying, "I will hang the merchandise on the front door handle after you transfer the money," and disappeared after the victim sent the money.

Online scam victims are also increasing sharply. According to statistics from the scam victim-sharing site 'The Cheat,' the number of reported internet scam cases rose from over 260,000 in 2022 to over 360,000 last year.

The amount of damages also significantly increased from 200.8 billion KRW in 2022 to 356.5 billion KRW last year.

When receiving a non-face-to-face transaction proposal during second-hand trading, it is essential to thoroughly verify the seller's identity and the transaction location, and it is important to conduct safe transactions as much as possible through face-to-face dealings.

Image source: Conversations between the victim Mr. Lee and Mr. A / Kyunghyang Shinmun, AI-generated image for understanding of the article / ChatGPT, reference photo for supporting the article / Getty Images Bank