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Buying a used car online is becoming increasingly popular as consumers’ interest in owning cars is on the rise. Unfortunately, some fraudsters take advantage of this trend to scam people. Today, online car auction scams are running rampant.
As recently stated by the Directorate of Cyber Crime of the Criminal Investigation Agency of the Indonesian National Police, the public reports crimes committed on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, etc.
See also: Choose an Auction House Wisely amid the Rise of Online Scams
Typically, victims are swayed by the low prices offered by online auction scammers, but they fail to approach the offer with careful and thorough measures. They do not take any precautions and conduct further investigations into the validity of the website or the auctioned product.
However, protecting yourself from online scams is not difficult. The trick is to identify how the scammers approach you regarding their auction.
If you are contacted by someone claiming to represent a well-known auction house via a social media account, pay close attention to the account’s displays or feeds. If you see a lot of awful font, content design, and pictures or photos, it is likely a fake account.
Second, pay attention to the advertised prices. You should be suspicious if the prices are significantly lower than the market prices. The bid prices will not always be low as the sellers or owners genuinely intend to auction their items.
In addition, auction items will have base prices as a starting point. The base prices will be set by the sellers or the owner of the items; thus, the bid prices will be higher than the base prices, not the other way around.
See also: To Buy a Safe Auctioned Car, Choose a Trusted Auction House
Third, learn about auction procedures and select a highly credible auction house. If you notice that the procedures seem off or incomprehensible, check with the auction organizers on their official communication channels. Thus, you will know right away whether the auction items being offered to you are genuine.
Those are several steps to avoid online auction scams. Remember to only attend auctions organized by official and highly credible auction houses.
PT Balai Lelang Serasi, a subsidiary of PT Serasi AutoRaya (SERA) under Astra Group, is one of the auction houses that ticks all the boxes.
Since 2007, the company has held auctions under the IBID brand. In addition to being trustworthy, IBID also offers another benefit in that you may participate in live auctions via the IBID app, which is already available on the Google Play Store. Therefore, you can bid from anywhere without having to be present at the auction venue.IBID auctions are conveniently accessible online through the website or mobile app. By choosing IBID, you have chosen a safe and convenient way to participate in auctions. For more information, please visit IBID official website at https://www.ibid.astra.co.id/ or download the app from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store.