Crime Prevention - Online Scams

Online purchases have soared during the covid-19 restrictions and the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau with the support of the Central Bank have been monitoring websites offering unsecured loans and investment products. 

We asked that members of the public consider these red flags:

1. The first RED FLAG. The common trend with these sites is that they are offering quick and easy money.
2. The second RED FLAG is the requirement that a fee is paid in advance of the service being provided.
3. The third RED FLAG is that the fraudster will put pressure on the victim to act quickly or the opportunity will be lost
4. The name of the company on the website will often be somewhat similar to a genuine company.
    

These fraudulent companies operate using phone numbers that appear to be Irish, and they will have fake office locations in Ireland.

The public are advised to do the following;

• To look out for these red flags,
• To stop and think before engaging, and
• Not to engage unless they are 100% certain that they are dealing with a legitimate entity