The rise of technology has allowed us to do things that were unthinkable in the past, such as paying for goods and services as well as making quick bank transfers with the QR pay option our phones.
However, for store owners, there is now a higher risk of getting scammed by customers who can simply ‘pretend’ to make a payment.
Recently, Faez who is the owner of a pet store and hotel named Purrfect Pets, took to Twitter to share his experience on how he nearly got scammed by a ‘customer’.
In his post, he urged business owners that use QR pay methods to always double check the account linked to the QR code for confirmation that you’ve received the money transfer.
“This lady almost got away with it at our shop just now. Seriously, she had such a poker face.”
How it went down
In the Twitter post, Faez explained how the incident had come to be. “She walked in with 2 small boys and got a few things and wanted to pay. I was at the back just listening and our cashier asked how would she be paying.”
She asked if she could pay with DuitNow and proceeded to do so.
“Then I checked the QRPayBiz app. No transaction. She didn’t leave. She got MORE things.”
“I then went in front to the cashier. She was striking a conversation with my cashier while we were scanning her items, then she showed me her phone screen to confirm,” he wrote.
Faez said that this was the second “purchase” as the first one was for around RM40. “Do you see that it says the name of the shop instead of successful? Please be aware,” he said.
He then noted that she had actually screenshotted and cropped out the pay now button. “She then showed it as her receipt. She was really looking like she was doing nothing wrong and was talking to us normally.”
In a CCTV footage, Faez said that you can see how she keyed in the amount, screenshotted the pay page then closed the Maybank app.
“She then took all of their stuff and got into their car. I rechecked again and again but no transaction. I went to her and asked her to come back in and to return the items as no money was received,” said Faez.
“Then she said that her money had already been deducted. But I told her to bring it up with Maybank. So she left empty handed.”
It doesn’t end there
Despite not actually paying for the items, the woman went on to contact the store and asked when they were going to return her money.
“I called Maybank’s Fraud Department and they told me not to entertain her and asked her to call them instead.”
Faez stated that after her failed attempt, she then tried to go to another branch of the pet store. “It’s crazy, she tried the same tactic, however the staff there made her wait until her ‘payment’ went through. In the end, she paid for it with cash.”
As a closing note, Faez urged business owners to always be alert and aware of such things.
“Make sure that the payment receipt says successful and check the transaction to confirm. I pity all the small businesses and stalls, especially uncles and aunties selling kuih. How would they even know about this.”
Have you ever experienced something similar? Let us know in the comments.
Also read: M’sian Cake Shop Owner Scammed of Over RM15k by Customer Who Forged Payment Receipts
