A mall warned its shoppers about the unauthorized use of its brand identity on e-commerce platforms.
The management of Festival Mall, a long-established shopping center in Muntinlupa City, warned its shoppers about individuals using its brand identity and that of its parent company, Filinvest.
This advisory was issued on its social media accounts on July 10.
“Festival Mall and/or Lifemalls by Filinvest do not operate online shopping portals, marketplaces, or any buying/selling at Viber, WhatsApp, or other messaging apps,” the mall management said.
“We will bear no responsibility or liability for transactions involving individuals who fraudulently use and misrepresent the logos and photos of the mall and our company,” it added.
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Should they encounter claims of affiliation online, Festival Mall encouraged its shoppers to report these activities to authorities or to their official email address: [email protected].
“Your cooperation is appreciated as we address this issue and ensure a safe shopping experience. Thank you for your support,” it said.
Festival Mall was the latest establishment and organization victimized by fraud identity. Other brands were also used on fake advertisements and product offers on social media, emails, text messages and private messaging applications.
Filipinos were often reminded to be discerning and cautious about offers, links and chats they receive on their devices.
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In a separate advisory, BSP cautioned the public from unknown senders who send links through text messages.
The financial institution said that text messages with fake links are forms of phishing or in this case, SM-ishing.
“BEWARE of text messages from unknown senders that instruct you to click a link or copy-paste a link to your browser. This is a form of SMS Phishing or SMiShing, where scammers trick you into providing private information such as your username, password, mobile number, and one-time password or OTP,” the bank said.
To those whose bank accounts were compromised, the central bank strongly advised them to contact all their providers’ official channels and hotlines.
Victims of scams are also encouraged to ask the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for help.
They may also directly report to the BSP by following these steps:
- Click on the BOB icon on the BSP website: www.bsp.gov.ph. BOB means “BSP Online Buddy.”
- Chat on BSP Facebook Messenger: https://www.m.me/BangkoSentralngPilipinas/
- Globe subscribers can text this number: 21582277.
Here’s the link to BSP’s official consumer protection channel: Inclusive Finance – Consumer Protection (bsp.gov.ph).
