Not again… (UPDATED)

I’m quite busy these past few months as I try to finish my thesis writing, however, a recent event urged me to blog about this to warn others.

As you’ve learned in my earlier post, my father almost fell as a scam victim. I reckon he came close to being one again this time.

He found a website online advertising about paid volunteer opportunities.  As with other charitable institutions, they sometime ask for some fees to enter just to cover administrative matters. They are a charity anyway. However, what made me suspicious, after my father asked me to confirm the legitimacy of this organisation is the inconsistencies in the website. I might leave the more rigid examination to you but following are some of the things I initially observed:

• Some wrong spellings noted in the website.
• Googled the CEOs name and it doesn’t appear anywhere. It’s a bit odd for an “international charity organisation” boasting of spending more than US$12 million on charitable activities??
• The address points to an apartment unit in Victoria, which I reckon is not authorised to house any business but is only authorised for for residential purposes
• The telephone number seems bogus.

The last thing that cemented my suspicion was when I searched the organisation in the list of charitable institutions here in Australia via the ABN lookup website. The organisation doesn’t exist.

So, off to to the Scamwatch I go to report. 🙂

UPDATE: I have found this credible thread in this forum online. I hope these Filipinos seek the help of the nearest embassy or consulate to be able to return to Manila. Unfortunately, justice is quite hard to find in the Philippines especially if you are a victim of international scammers.