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Retailers strive to maintain an opening lineCommunication with buyers, whether they send promotional leaflets by mail or provide ordering information by SMS. But although this constant contact can help companies maintain loyal customers, it can also cause major problems when crooks seek to exploit it. Now, one of the largest and most popular retailers in the country had to denounce a new scam using its name to target buyers. Read the rest to know why Walmart warns you to pay attention to a type of message now.

Read this then:5 warnings to buyers of former Walmart employees.

Criminals use phishing patterns to encourage you to give them your private information by fraudulently one "legitimate company"According to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). The phishing report of Threatlabz ​​2022 of the security company Zscalle indicated that there wasA 29% increase In phishing attacks on the whole last year compared to the previous year.AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

But the retail sector has experienced the highest increase in these scams. According to the report, retail and large companies have increased by more than 400% of phishing attempts. "The report revealed that phishing attacks attract the victimspretend to be the best brands, "Security magazine Explain.

In this spirit, it is not surprising that one of the largest retail companies, Walmart, is at the center of a new scam.

Buyers of several parts of the United States recently reported similar stories about crooks using the name of Walmart. The last incident comes from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where a resident appointedLinda de Simone told Brprroud.com that she hadreceived a letter So-called Walmart, recruiting her for a secret opportunity from the buyer with the retailer. She also received two checks, one on October 1 and the other on October 8 - with instructions telling her what to do with checks as a secret buyer.

It's almost the same thing that happened last monthBianca Baluyut, a resident from Elk Grove, California. On September 16, ABC10 reported that Baluyut also hadReceived a check And a letter with secret shopping instructions for his next trip to Walmart. But the resident of Elk Grove said that she had received a telephone call the day after a person also claiming to be a partner of Walmart. "I think ... Walmart has my information. I make microphones, maybe it's really them," she told the media.

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Walmart lists secret purchases, also called mystery stores, like a common scam on itsFraud alert web page, explaining that he does not use this type of service. "Unfortunately, the bad actors occasionally take advantage of Walmart's reputation to achieve this kind of scam," said a company spokesperson at ABC10. "Walmart never requests mysteries or secret buyers by e-mail, mail or any other public way."

De Simone said that his letter asked him to deposit the vouchers sent by post of total value of more than $ 4,000 to her bank account, then buy eight Walmart Visa Walmart gift cards. "I want it to be real, but I know it would drain me and my bank account if I followed," she told Brprroud.com. Baluyut, on the other hand, received a check for $ 3,345 and was invited to deposit the money in his bank and then go to Walmart and take three terms, according to ABC10.

"The problem is that the check is false, so when it bounces (is returned to your account by your bank as" insufficient funds "or a" print in a closed account ") - which occurs after money is Cars - The consumer is responsible (in some cases, criminally) at the bank for the total amount of the false check, plus additional penalty fees, "warns Walmart on his website. According to the retailer, some buyers are even led to provide their personal bank account information, which can make it an identity theft victim.

Although you can be targeted with the buyer's secret scam by e-mail or SMS, from Simone told Brprroud.com that his letter had arrived in a Priority mail envelope of the American postal service (USPS). Baluyut told ABC10 that she had received an envelope by UPS certified mail. "It looks very real and I thought, Wow, why me?" she says.

Fortunately, the two buyers were able to avoid being victims of the scam. Walmart lists the signs of fraud associated with the buyer's secret scam on his website that you can use to protect yourself as well. According to the retailer, these communications are "often associated with fictitious services or brand initiative with letters or emails from addresses that seem to be" wal-mart "or an address such as'[Protected by e-mail]'"

At the same time, Walmart demands that any potential hire first ends a hiring process which includes legal documents and drug screening tests - and these secret scams of buyers do not meet the same requirement. "Never deposit a check that you receive by post from a" mystery shopping "company. No legitimate enterprise will pay in advance and will not ask you to return part of the money," advises the company. "Remember, if it seems too beautiful to believe, it's the case!"