Welcome again to the Public Awareness column provided by the Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF). This month’s article provides information on investment scams and some key red flags to help you avoid being a victim of fraud.
Don’t hand over your hard-earned money to just anyone.
Investment scams have been on the rise in recent years. You, or someone you know, may have seen or received an email or a phone call to invest in a product or property and to send money to secure your success. The worldwide use of the internet and people’s desperate need to get rich quickly has made it easier and faster for fraudsters to target a wider range of people.
The term fraud refers to an intentional deception by a person, referred to as a fraudster, for his own personal gain. The deception arises because the fraudster sells you a product or an idea that is not accurate and in most cases totally different from what you think you’re getting. Fraud is a crime in Fiji and defrauding people for money or valuables is a common purpose of fraud.