Scammers target freight industry

Scams targeting the freight industry are doing the rounds internationally and South Africa is not immune. Following several incidents in recent weeks, security experts have issued warnings to local companies to be on the lookout for possible scammers trying to extort money. The Transport Asset Protection Association (Tapa) also issued a warning to its members globally saying scams were rampant within the freight sector at present. The scammers tend to target small- to medium-sized businesses in particular. John Roodt of freight forwarding company Daigon says they were very nearly taken in by just such a scam. “We have seen these types of scams before, but in the past month there has been a definite increase. We very nearly got caught out by one, but managed to avoid being victims,” he said. “We were contacted via email by a person from a logistics company for a quote to move livestock by road from Gauteng to Bethlehem in the Free State. The quote was accepted and a cheque payment was made into our bank account.” But instead of the R12 000 quoted, the Absa bank notification received was for an amount of R99 000. “I was immediately called by the ‘customer’ saying they had overpaid and could I please refund them. I was planning to do so but something just did not seem right and I decided to wait. They then became persistent and I realised something was definitely wrong.” Luckily for Roodt his hesitancy to refund his customer paid off as the cheque payment was found to be fraudulent. “In other words I would have refunded them money they had never paid me,” he told FTW. While the company and individual names of the scammers differ the procedure used is similar, according to Johan Robinson, operational manager of Combined Private Investigations (CPI). Robinson says it is essential that any companies that have been contacted by such scammers forward the information to organisations such as Tapa who are working closely with the SAPS Hawks division or even their local industry association. “It is a form of organised crime and more often than not the people behind these criminal acts are part of international syndicates that are being tracked. The only way of closing them down is by making sure the authorities know what is happening.” Mike Walwyn of the South African Association of Freight Forwarders (Saaff) agrees saying it is imperative that companies ensure organisations such as Saaff know of these fraudulent attempts. “These are old tricks that rely on a company’s good faith. The trucking industry in particular has been targeted in the past with goods being picked up by someone pretending to be the transporter.” In another incident reported to FTW, a person from a logistics company in Uganda asked for a quote to cover the purchase of machinery locally and the freight applicable to export to Uganda. They also made a cheque payment but it was not worth the paper it was printed on as the cheques were found to be fraudulent. “The names of the companies, the banks they use and all the information around the transactions seem reputable enough which is why people often fall for the scam,” says Robinson. “And it’s not just a South African problem but one that is seen around the globe. It is important that companies know about the scam and are on the lookout for the signs. Know the red flags and stop the scam before it happens.”