Vodafone is calling on higher authorities to re-look at our current laws and make necessary changes to ensure scammers could face severe penalties including jail time and prevent them from re-offending again and again.
This comes as a man allegedly impersonated a Vodafone staff and attempted to scam a supermarket.
Vodafone says they are deeply concerned about reports of an individual who is involved in multiple M-PAiSA scam cases around the country and has now re-offended after being subsequently released on bail from court.
They say the alleged scammer yesterday allegedly posed as a Vodafone staff and approached the unsuspecting M-PAiSA agent to fix the EFTPOS machine with the possible intention of committing fraud.
The staff at the supermarket noticed his suspicious behaviour and were able to call in the police in time who have since taken him in custody at Valelevu Police Station.
Vodafone believes the scammers may be exploiting the current laws to be released on bail and continuing to scam and defraud unsuspecting members of the public and businesses their hard money.
They further say that white-collar crimes, cybercrime, digital fraud and scams are on the rise, and while the police are doing their part to apprehend and present the perpetrators in court, the current laws and bail provisions allow these scammers back in the community who continue to re-offend undeterred.
Meanwhile, Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission is reminding companies that to avoid the issues of scammers, they need to verify the credentials of individuals claiming to represent any companies.
FCCC says consumers should be cautious and confirm with the actual company before engaging in any transaction or sharing personal information.
