Fake Australia Post worker targets eBay seller: 'It is a scam'
An eBay seller has been the target of a scammer posing as an Australia Post worker, who attempted to lure the man to share his payment details.
The Sydney man, who sold an item to an unknown buyer on eBay, suspected something was amiss when he received a link purporting to be from Australia Post, which took him to an online chat.
In the online chat, a person appearing to be an Australia Post customer service representative named Sophie requested the man's bank details so he could receive payment for the item.
"I think I'm getting scammed. Someone bought something off ebay.com.au from me. This is what they sent me," shared the confused man on Facebook.
The Sydneysider also shared a screenshot of the exchange between himself and the scammer, which features Australia Post branding.
Australia Post and eBay have confirmed to Yahoo News Australia that it is a scam that has been circulating.
Scammer poses as Australia Post employee
"Is this Australia Post?" asked the eBay seller in the online chat.
The scammer responded with what appears to be an automated message requesting payment details from the seller.
"Welcome to support, the goods and delivery have been paid for. Please enter your details to receive payment for the goods. If you need my help, please let me know," reads the opening line of the scammer's message.
"This is the official link for receiving funds from AUSPOST," the scammer added.
The man soon caught on that it was odd for a delivery service to request details that are securely stored on eBay.
"My details are in eBay. Why would you need them again?" he asked the fake Australia Post employee.
The scammer responded by saying: "You are talking about two different services. We don't share card information, and we don't share information with third parties."
Australia Post praised for 'awesome' act after customer lost gold ring
'Get a life': Woman's Australia Post gripe sparks heated backlash
'It is a scam', confirms Australia Post and eBay
"We have reviewed the post and we can confirm it is a scam," an Australia Post spokesperson told Yahoo News.
The spokesperson said that it is important for customers to remember that Australia Post would never "call, text or email to request payment" or "ask you to click on an email link to print off a label to redeem your package".
Australia Post would also never call, text or email asking for personal or financial information including password, credit card details or account information.
Similarly, an eBay spokesperson urged users to be vigilant against scammers impersonating companies.
"eBay will never ask you to provide confidential information like your password or credit card details. We won't include attachments, we'll never use threatening language and we'll always send a copy of any important messages to your eBay messages," the spokesperson said.
"If a message doesn't appear to be from a legitimate source, contains a suspicious URL, demands immediate action or asks for personal information, users should not respond and report any activity to us via spoof@ebay.com.au."
How to protect yourself from scammers
On closer inspection it's evident the communication claiming to be from Australia Post is a phishing scam, which is a type of scam that attempts to trick people into sharing personal details by pretending to be from a legitimate business.
In this case, the scammer claiming to be from Australia Post used the man's details from eBay to lure him to click a link and directed him to an online chat that was designed to look genuine.
According to Scamwatch, people can protect themselves from phishing scams by never clicking links or opening attachments from emails claiming to be from trusted organisations who ask you to verify details.
People who are worried they've received a spam link should also check the internet address of the website – as it will not be the official website of the organisation, as in this instance.
Scamwatch urges anyone who has been scammed, or receives a phishing scam, to notify them via its report a scam page.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
