BBB of South Texas warns holiday shoppers of early surge in scams
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Weslaco, TX (KRGV) — The Better Business Bureau of South Texas is warning shoppers about scam ads and phishing texts showing up before the holiday shopping season after the agency got 10 scam reports this week alone.
The BBB said that number is unusual for this time of year. The agency said scams usually rise after Black Friday.
"We noticed a lot of scammers are on Facebook. There are a lot of advertisements that are on Facebook, and people fall for the scammer they are impersonating," Better Business Bureau of South Texas President Hilda Martinez said.
Some messages claim to be from retailers and promise gift cards if people click a link. Others warn people about a defective product.
"You will never get a text message from any retailer telling you that there's anything wrong with what you bought, so the easy thing to do is ignore those," Channel 5 News Chief Engineer Michael Leal said.
Leal said people who are worried about what they bought should go directly to the retailer's website. He also said people should never enter login or personal information through a link in a text message.
"They are trying to induce panic. Something has been purchased, or it's been done illegally or needs to be acted upon immediately," Leal said.
The BBB also recommends keeping receipts for purchases and checking bank and credit card statements.
"A lot of it has to do with charges people are not aware of, and they are not requesting a receipt or statement either from the bank or credit card," Martinez said.
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