Receiving alerts of undelivered packages due to incomplete address details? PHLPost, DHL issue warning against them
With the holidays approaching, scams become more prevalent. The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost) has issued a warning against incidents where users receive messages from unknown senders asking them for their personal infomation using the agency's name.
In a Facebook post, the government-owned postal office alerted the public regarding a phishing scam that involves "fraudulent and illegal attempts by unauthorized groups and/or individuals thru texts and online messages that use PHLPost's name."
PHLPost defined phishing as "an illegal way to acquire sensitive data such as personal and financial information by pretending to be a legitimate company or individual via SMS, online messages, calls, and more."
It stressed that users who have received such messages must not share their confidential information and to not click any attached links.
In the comments section, the agency cited examples of deceitful messages that users have received on their phones and computers.
One message that was sent via text read, "PHLPost: Your package has arrived at the warehouse but cannot be delivered due to incomplete address details. Please open the link to view. PHLPost wishes you a great day!"
Another one read, "PHLPost: Your package has arrived at the local postal facility, but the address is wrong and cannot be delivered. Please update. Reply to '1' to obtain your package link, PHLPost wishes you a great day!"
Another showed the user being asked about their credit card details.
Shipping and courier delivery service DHL Express Philippines had also warned its customers about these kinds of fraudulent attempts in the past.
It advised those who have received messages from suspicious senders to always verify the domain names of the URL and to never disclose sensitive information such as user ID, password, account number, and credit card information. DHL also stressed that one should not follow "too good to be true" offers and to delete these fraudulent messages immediately to avoid clicking them by accident.
Aside from this, PHLPost has also issued an alert regarding a scam that tricks people into paying for bogus packages, wherein they will be directed to a website that looks similar to PHLPost's official one.
The agency reminded the public that Customs Tax Free parcels are directly delivered to its destination with a fee of P112 for Customs Charge. Those packages that will undergo Customs Examination, should follow its procedure for a smoother transaction.