AN investigation is to be launched into a scam in which members of the public are being offered US$1 Million by persons claiming to be representatives of Western Union Mone y Transfer.
According to an e-mail being circulated by someone calling herself Latisha Nicholas, the company is disbursing the money as part of its 157th anniversary celebrations. Persons are required to respond to the e-mail disclosing their full names, address, and telephone numbers.
You sent money through a Western Union agent or received money through Western Union. You've been SELECTED as the winner of this great opportunity. Kindly reconfirm your information," the e-mail reads.
"However, you are required to confirm the following information (name, address, and telephone number) for immediate payment of your USD1,000,000.00 (One Million United States Dollars)," it continues.
But that is not how the company operates, according to Lorraine Jones, corporate communications manager at GraceKennedy Limited, which operates the Western Union franchise in Jamaica.
"The company does not conduct competitions that way. We would have advertised and so on, so I am pretty sure that it is not legit," said Jones, adding that she will be contacting the executives of the parent company for them to investigate who is behind the e-mail.
Jones said this is not the first time that unscrupulous persons have attempted to use the company's name to lure unsuspecting customers, recounting at least one other recent incident.
"That one was investigated but I don't readily have the details to say what is the outcome of that. But we usually try to investigate," she noted.
Courtney Campbell, CEO of the Grace Financial Group, in the meantime, warned customers not to fall for the hoax.
Said Campbell: "This seems to be one of the regular scams on remittance companies. By all indications it is a fraudulent e-mail... You (customers) should ignore it," said Campbell. He asked that the original recipient of the e-mail forward it to spoof@WesternUnion.com.
