Man buys $2 rice dumplings online, gets scammed $6,000

With the Dragon Boat Festival just around the corner, rice dumplings, also known as bak zhang, are flying off the shelves. 

One man surnamed Lin thought that he got his at a good deal at $2 per dumpling, considering that the average price is around $4 these days.

But instead of him being able to save a few dollars, a whopping $6,000 was wiped out from his bank account overnight, reported Shin Min Daily News. 

The 43-year-old man reportedly saw a promotion for the dumplings on Facebook and wanted to order 15 pieces. 

When he contacted the seller on June 12, they told him that it was more convenient to deal via WhatsApp. 

There, the man was sent a link to place his order. 

When he clicked on the link, his phone automatically downloaded an app. 

"[The seller and I] were talking on WhatsApp throughout the whole process. I followed the other party's instructions step by step. After downloading the app, I set up an account number and password, and then ordered the meat dumplings," he recounted. 

But when he was asked for his bank details, he felt uncomfortable and voiced out his concerns to the seller. 

He was then instructed to add the order to his shopping cart and fill in his home address and contact number. 

WhatsApp number changed and $6,000 gone 

However, the next day (June 13), he received a notice from his bank saying that $6,000 had been transferred from his account in the early morning. 

And to top it off, his WhatsApp mobile number had somehow changed. 

"My colleague called me via WhatsApp in front of me, but my phone didn't ring. I also called my colleague and another number came up, but the profile photo was the same," he shared. 

As he was unable to log into his bank account online, Lin called the bank and learned that someone had tried to login to his account several times, and his account had been temporarily blocked. 

Lin said he has since called the police. 

The police told Shin Min daily News that a report was received and an investigation is ongoing. 

AsiaOne has reached out to the police for more details. 

Woman loses $50k life savings after downloading third-party app

In a separate incident in May, a woman tried to buy some durians online after she saw a promotion for it on Facebook. 

She too was asked to download a third-party app, where she was asked to enter her personal information to apply for a membership. 

After doing this, she ended up having her life savings wiped out, leaving her with just $7. 

"I found out that on Saturday, there were two unauthorised transfers in my account. The first transfer was $27,549 and the second was $26,231. These are my life savings," she said, adding that she made a police report. 

ALSO READ: Woman details how an Instagram ad selling $2 dim sum led her bank account to be compromised

melissateo@asiaone.com