Christmas fraud: Viennese describes the attacks of the package fraudsters

Von WOM

The pre -Christmas period not only draws a festive mood and anticipation, but also the risk of fraudulent machinations. Fraudsters are more active than ever in online retail, where many people expect packages. A Viennese recently made an unpleasant acquaintance with these criminals and describes her experiences.

In the past few months, there have always been cases of so-called package fraudsters who damage online retailers by thousands of euros and cause fear and stress among the people concerned. According to information from the Wiener police Orders with fake names and address. His damage amounts to an impressive 13,000 euros.

a surprising package

A person affected by Vienna Mariahilf was delivered a large package at the end of October. She had not given up an order, but the delivery package contained a costly Apple Watch. When she contacted the online shipping dealer, she learned that another package - a cell phone - was on the way to her that she then canceled.

A few hours later the doorbell rang. A young man who spoke as a neighbor claimed that the mail had given up a package for him. Surprised and with a queasy feeling she gave him the package, only to realize shortly afterwards that she had fallen for a fraudulent manufacture. The alleged neighbor left a wrong phone number so that she could not contact him.

aggressive mesh

In the following weeks, the Viennese received several packages, including Airpods and other expensive items, all of which were ordered on account. For the person concerned, this meant not only financial stress, but also constant fear that the fraudster could knock on their door again. Even her children were drawn into concern and had to learn not to open if the mother was not at home.

The Viennese police inform that statistics on such cases are not comprehensively recorded. Cybercrime seems to be gaining weight: In 2023, over 65,000 ads were collected, which corresponds to an increase of 9.4 percent compared to the previous year. The stitch of the 'purchase-on-calculation fraud' has been known to the authorities for a long time.

Additional information show that the victims often only experience fraud through invoices or reminders, since the actual identity theft is hidden in advance. The name and address are mostly taken from publicly accessible sources.

Helpful advice for those affected

The Center for Safe Information Technology has published some advice to protect potential victims. First of all, affected people should keep calm and do not react immediately to demands from debt collection agencies. It is advisable to discuss the situation with a lawyer and to file a complaint as soon as possible.

The cybercrime helpline in Vienna has been available for two years and offers help under number 01/4000-4006. The authorities and consumer advocates remind you that online shops have to provide evidence that the order was really given up by the data subject.