The Consumer Council of Fiji has issued a public alert about a group of individuals running a deceptive pyramid scheme known as “EbayShop Online Recruitment.”
The council says it has received numerous queries from consumers regarding the authenticity of this recruitment, prompting an extensive investigation.
The recruitment scheme operates by luring unsuspecting individuals through referrals to download the messaging app 'Telegram' for communication purposes.
Upon joining, participants receive a link to a website created by the operators of this scheme.
The council says the website offers an enticing free trial, wherein users are presented with five online orders to process by clicking 'confirm order.'
Participants are then promised a payment of $1 per order, meaning they will receive a total of $5 during the free trial period.
However, the council says when they attempt to withdraw their earnings, they discover that the minimum withdrawal amount is set at $6, leaving them unable to access the funds.
It says subsequently, participants are coerced into 'buying-in' by spending their own money to get more orders.
The buy-in options range from a few hundred dollars, to upwards of a thousand dollars.
The council says the scammers have gone to extreme measures, including printing shirts and signage, which are prominently displayed on their Facebook page by their Marketing Manager, 'Jack Daniels.'
These orders appear to originate from popular shopping sites such as Alibaba, Shoppee, Amazon, eBay, Best Buys or Wish.
However, the Consumer Council says the orders are entirely fake and are generated by the scammers' website.
Upon conducting thorough investigations, the Consumer Council has received verifications of no association from eBay (the genuine online shopping site) and Best-Buys with Ebay Online Recruitment based in Nadi.
Council CEO, Seema Shandil says they are alerting consumers of the complex and deceptive nature of this scheme as some early participants may earn money, giving an illusion of legitimacy.
However, Shandil says these schemes ultimately collapse, causing a vast majority of participants to lose money.
She says no legitimate recruiter will ever ask individuals to pay money upfront in order to secure orders.
Shandil also says online shopping platforms such as Amazon, eBay, Alibaba, etc, do not re-route their transactions to a third-party website for processing.
