Scam alert! Thieves use new vehicle tracker scam to steal cars
Criminals are posing as employees of vehicle-tracking companies and targeting their clients in a scam.
The criminals claim that the customers’ tracking devices need repairing or replacing, then set up appointments, where they attempt to steal vehicles.
The syndicate is targeting clients from all the well-known car tracking providers, mostly in Gauteng. Several people have received these calls and shared their stories on social media platforms.
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Customers of the service providers have received communication regarding the scam, telling them that they should not allow anyone to come to test-drive their cars.
I was a victim of this last week Tuesday. My car was stolen in my complex. Im still in shock and shattered.
— Bridgette Lefifi (@MissBri21) October 27, 2020
In a statement on their website, Tracker had the following to say:
The scamsters have targeted the customers of several vehicle tracking companies.
If you are contacted about repairs to your tracking device by someone claiming to be from Tracker, please ask them to take you through the Tracker security verification questions associated with your account in order to verify the legitimacy of the call. If they are unable to do so, advise them that you will need to contact someone at Tracker to verify their claim. If you are still unsure or find the call suspicious please contact our call centre on 0860 60 50 40.
It is important to keep the following in mind:
A Tracker technician will never need to nor should they ask to test drive your vehicle
Always check the email address the request is sent from – this is often an immediate give away as the criminals would not be using a tracker.co.za address
You can always confirm the validity of an appointment by contacting our call centre on 0860 60 50 40