Medical technician loses 20,000 baht in Buriram call centre scam

A medical technician in Buriram fell victim to a call centre scam, losing over 20,000 baht after being tricked by someone posing as an electricity authority officer. The victim, 54 year old Yutthana shared his experience to warn the public and urge the government to improve security systems.

On Saturday, September 7, Yutthana received a call from an individual claiming to be an officer from the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA). The caller stated that they were replacing an old meter at his family home in Surin with a new digital one.

Initially sceptical due to the after-hours call, Yutthana was reassured when the caller mentioned that the PEA operates 24 hours a day. Yutthana also called the village head in Surin, who confirmed that the meter had indeed been changed.

Following this, the person posing as a PEA officer informed him about a refund scheme where customers would receive a monthly refund of 1,000 baht for three months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, totalling 2,497 baht. The caller then instructed him to download a fake PEA application and continue the conversation via LINE, reported KhaoSod.

Yutthana followed the instructions and filled in the requested information, and moments later, his phone shut down. Upon restarting, he found that 20,497 baht had been transferred out of his account, leaving him with only 97satangsg. Yutthana revealed that due to the detailed information that call centre scams possess, anyone can fall victim to these schemes.

“I want to warn the public, that even though there are constant warnings in the news, people still fall for these scams. I was always cautious, but I was deceived because the scammers had detailed information.

“Regardless of how knowledgeable one is, anyone can become a victim of these schemes.”

In related news, a group of people reported being scammed by a fake doctor selling fraudulent tours and collecting fees for work in the UK, with losses exceeding 40 million baht. Despite a red notice, the suspect remains at large, with a 1 million baht reward for their capture.