Police and Financial Sector Launch Month-Long Campaign to Prevent ‘No-Show Scams’ Targeting Small Businesses

[Financial News] The police, financial authorities and financial-sector institutions have launched a joint effort to prevent so-called “no-show scams,” in which perpetrators impersonate public institutions or military units and ask small-business owners to purchase goods on their behalf and pay in advance.
The Korean National Police Agency said on the 15th that it held a campaign launch ceremony titled “No-Show Scams OUT! Show Me Your Money!” on the 14th in the conference room of its Integrated Response Team in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, together with the Financial Services Commission (FSC), the Financial Supervisory Service and Shinhan Financial Group.
The campaign was organized to prevent damage to small businesses and strengthen cooperation among relevant agencies as no-show scams have recently spread nationwide. It will run for about a month, from the 14th through the 16th of next month. The campaign urges people not to request or accept advance-payment purchases on someone else’s behalf and to verify payment before proceeding.
During the campaign, the police will focus on informing small-business owners about actual cases, prevention guidelines, and reporting and response procedures. Public outreach will also be conducted through the online and offline channels of financial authorities and Shinhan Financial Group.
Content recreating actual no-show scam cases, produced by the police, and Shinhan Financial Group’s campaign promotional video will be used in stages. The campaign will also promote a sounder transaction culture among public institutions, businesses and ordinary users by improving practices such as requesting purchases on someone else’s behalf and advance payments.
The campaign is being carried out alongside the Korean National Police Agency’s implementation of a system for suspending transactions on accounts suspected of being used for new types of phishing. Its goal is to strengthen the response system of investigative and financial institutions and proactively prevent the spread of losses through preventive measures.
Shinhan Financial Group has developed South Korea’s first no-show scam victim compensation insurance and will provide it free of charge to store owners affiliated with the delivery app Ttaenggyeoyo. A ceremony to present the insurance policy was also held during the launch event.
Oh Chang-bae, head of the Integrated Response Team for telecommunications and financial fraud at the Korean National Police Agency, emphasized, "The Korean National Police Agency, financial authorities and financial companies will join forces to eradicate no-show scams that exploit small-business owners’ diligence and abuse society’s trust, and we will build a culture in which everyone can conduct transactions more safely."
[email protected] Kim Ye-ji Reporter