In a cautionary tale of the perils of online shopping, a local woman, identified as Miss L (name withheld for privacy), recently found that she had lost BND2,000 in what appears to be an online scam involving the purchase of preloved luxury bags on Instagram.
She reported the incident to the Royal Brunei Police Force, who are conducting investigations.
Miss L shared her story with the Weekend Bulletin, to raise awareness and prevent others from falling into a similar trap.
Miss L on recounting the incident that unfolded last Thursday, said that her sister had expressed interest in acquiring a pre-loved luxury bag, prompting her to turn to Instagram in search of a seller.
“I found this local luxury bag seller’s Instagram account with thousands of followers, and it was based in Brunei,” she said.
The abundance of posts showcasing various bags on the seller’s Instagram account gave Miss L the impression of legitimacy.
She reached out to the seller via a private message.
Initially, she selected a bag she liked, but it was already sold. She then chose another, only to find it was booked as well.
Finally, she settled on a Kelly 1962 bag priced at BND2,000.
“During our conversation, it seemed like many people had successfully made purchases from this seller, so I believed it was a legitimate business,” Miss L noted.
She continued, “I requested to make an appointment to view the bag in person, but the seller informed me they only accepted online orders due to discounted pricing.
“After making the full payment, the seller assured me that all their products were authentic.
They even offered a 100 per cent refund guarantee if the bag turned out to be fake.
“To further convince me, the seller shared pictures of an authentication card and the bag’s interior.”
Miss L received bank account details from the seller for the payment transfer. Believing the transaction was legitimate, she proceeded with the transfer.
However, the account turned out to be invalid. The seller then provided another account, through which the payment went successfully.
Following the payment, the seller informed Miss L that the order was being processed and offered a special promotion: buy two bags and receive a free bag of her choice.
Miss L inquired about paying in cash for the second bag, but the seller insisted on an online transfer.
As suspicions began to mount, Miss L attempted to collect her first purchase from the seller’s address but couldn’t locate the shop.
Requests for a pinned location and a phone number went unanswered, and the seller claimed that the initial deal involved three bags, making it impossible to collect the Kelly bag. The seller’s communication abruptly ceased.
Miss L promptly contacted her bank to halt the transfer, and the bank advised her to file a police report, which she did. To her dismay, she discovered that she was not the first victim of this Instagram scam.
Reflecting on the experience, Miss L admitted, “My mistake was that this was my first online purchase, and I failed to notice that the seller’s posts had no likes or comments. It seems they were luring customers with the buy two, get one free promotion.”
Traumatised by the incident, Miss L offered advice to the public, stating, “I’m now wary of making online purchases. I urge everyone to buy from reputable online sellers and conduct thorough research before making any transactions to avoid falling victim to scammers.” – James Kon
