Fraudsters pose as Expedia employees to take money from unsuspecting consumers, according to a press release.
Expedia Group and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) have teamed up to warn consumers about these scams that have been reported in the last few days. So far, people from 17 states, including Canada, have lost about $10,000 due to this scam. Individuals have lost as much as $3,700.
According to the press release, people are calling customer service numbers that pose as Expedia but are actually scams. Individuals who call these numbers want to confirm or change a reservation they made through the Expedia website. Scammers tell callers that the refund page is down and ask callers to buy gift cards to get a refund or change their reservations.
“Our aim is always to ensure that travelers have a seamless, hassle-free booking experience with us and it is incredibly unfortunate that fraudsters have disrupted our customers’ well-deserved holidays and travel plans. Rest assured that we are also working hard to find ways to prevent this from happening in the future,” Expedia said in a statement.
To combat these recent scams, Expedia is reportedly working with search engines to reduce fraudulent ads, making its customer service contact more visible and easier to find on its website, and adding information about these scams to its customer service portal.
Expedia works with the BBB because it is an accredited company with an A-plus rating from consumers.
This breach is not the first time hackers have targeted travel platforms. Last year, travel booking company Orbitz, which is owned by Expedia Group, experienced a similar scam where hackers accessed over 800,000 credit cards by hacking Orbitz’s website.
A BBB spokesperson said that travel scams see an increase in the spring months when people start booking their summer trips. The BBB provided tips for consumers to guard against scams, such as considering travel insurance, verifying all reservations by calling the hotel or business directly, reading the fine print and paying with a credit card instead of a debit card.
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Source: newstars.edu.vn