Woolworths Warns its Clients of a Customer Survey Scam

Woolworths, a renowned Australian supermarket chain, is urging fellow country-men to be wary of a fake customer 'satisfaction survey' that promises voucher worth $400, reported THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD reported on September 19, 2013.

The Woolworths alerts on its official website that the study is a "phishing" scam designed by cybercriminals to collect private information such as bank details.

The survey using the name of Woolworths and logo is circulating via email and Facebook and promising a "free $400, $150 or $100" vouchers as reward.

The Australian competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) says that it has received 140 complaints about the scam ever since the start of September 2013.

ACCC Deputy Chairperson, Delia Rickard commented that Vouchers are legal tool of marketing, implying it is easy to get trapped by a bogus one, as published by THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD on September 19, 2013.

She advises the Internauts in the country to never trust surveys associated to social media websites even if they are recommended by friends.

"If you come across such surveys, first call customer care officials before getting started with them," she advised.

Such survey-based phishing scandals are pretty widespread and have targeted patrons of various high-profile businesses around the globe like Coca Cola, McDonald's, and Westpac. Companies sometimes conduct surveys for customers offering prizes to participants who win prizes in a draw. In few cases, respondents may minor fees or other small rewards for giving their feedback and opinions to the companies. But, companies are not likely to give substantial cash award to every customer who is willing to participate in an unimportant study consisting of few general questions nor do they anticipate customers to give sensitive personal as well as financial details on unsecure website.

Moreover, it is not the first time that Woolworth's popularity has been exploited by cyber crooks in a phishing email campaign. Back in August 2012, phishing emails entitled 'Customer Satisfaction Survey' were unearthed by security experts, that informed innocent recipients that they have been selected for a Woolworth survey comprising of five-questions, a chance to win gift certificates worth $50.

» SPAMfighter News - 9/27/2013