From deception with negotiations from abroad to fake offers, how to recognize scams to avoid. Almost 7 out of 10 Italians in the sights of sensitive data thieves. "Beware of requests for bank transfers, and payments only on the platform"
Police di Stato and Airbnb are renewing their prevention campaign to help those who are new to online bookings to recognize and stay away from the most common scams. Because while booking a vacation rental online is easy, you still have to deal with the possibility of running into scam attempts.
More and more people are choosing to organize their holidays completely independently, and unfortunately this trend has attracted the attention of malicious people. According to the 1st Censis-DeepCyber Report, approximately 65% of Italians have been the target of deceptive emails in an attempt to convince potential victims to share sensitive data. Furthermore, travel and accommodation bookings are among the five digital activities that Italians consider to be at highest risk for the security of their personal data.
"As the summer season approaches, the number of people who book and purchase travel and holidays "online" is constantly increasing", says Ivano Gabrielli, Director of the Postal and Communications Police Service, "also thanks to the search for very low-cost offers. Unfortunately, these activities are not always free from risks, as shown by the reports of fraud received by the Postal Police portal. www.commissariatodips.it.
Sometimes,” continues Gabrielli, “you can fall into the trap of artfully counterfeit “decoy” sites or unscrupulous individuals, who advertise vacation packages at very discounted prices while hiding real scams. Our goal,” concludes the Director of the Postal Police, “is also to help users buy with complete peace of mind regardless of their level of computer literacy. For this reason, in collaboration with Airbnb, we have created an online Guide to Safe E-Commerce with some useful advice and practical suggestions for problem-free online purchases.”
“Despite the 6 million active listings available globally, scam attempts are extremely rare on Airbnb and a support team is available 24 hours a day to support guests. The proof is that the most common frauds occur on other sites and the name of Airbnb is used to lure the potential victim because it is a brand that transmits trust,” explains Giacomo Trovato, Country Manager of Airbnb Italy. “It is important that both the contacts between hosts and guests and the payments always take place within our site or application, as indicated in our terms of service. In fact, Airbnb retains the sum at the time of booking, returning it to the host only 24 hours after check-in.”
Here are the most common scams to stay away from
The international negotiation: A fictitious owner who has just moved abroad cannot welcome you in person. The remote negotiation is the prelude to an international bank transfer request. He will then start asking for documents (useful for building his next fake identity), share no less than 2-3 drafts of À la carte contracts, in a crescendo of zeal that will culminate in the need to close the deal within 24 hours. All followed by a fake booking page, a fake invoice and a real disappearance after receiving a large deposit.
Hide and Seek: The host has created an ad on a second-hand or real estate site, but as soon as you ask for information, he will tell you to move from one channel to another; for example, suggesting that you continue the conversation via email or messaging through the official app. After a few requests for details about your arrival, he will send you another email informing you that due to a problem with the calendar update, the ad is not currently visible in the search (in reality, he has removed it), and for convenience, he provides you with the direct link to the ad on the portal, but it is a clone site.
The indecent proposal: In this case too, the host has recently created an ad, devoid of reviews, but attractive. The scammer is friendly, very kind and happy that you have chosen his home and will also offer you a nice discount. So he suggests canceling the reservation and dealing privately, so as to save both of you the portal's commission. Once the transfer has been collected, the scammer will disappear.
Tips for not being deceived
Beware of links shared via email or from other sites: Be wary of those who offer rentals on social media, second-hand listing sites or real estate portals and then take you to another portal like Airbnb. There is a risk that they will share a link to a fake site. Beware of emails with the platform's logo: they may not be authentic. Reservations are only completed from the site or app: if the email includes a request for a bank transfer, it is a scam.
Beware of clone sites. To book from your phone, use the application, downloading it from the official store, and not through internet browsing. From your computer, make sure that the pages do not have a strange address and that the padlock icon is present. Airbnb pages have an address that begins with www.airbnb.it or www.airbnb.com. More complicated addresses or with a different structure should arouse suspicion. Examples of fake addresses are:
www.airbnbaffitti.it
www.airbnb-italia.it
www.air-bnb.it
The clone site, although well done, has a suspicious address: www.airbnb.com.list92192.com. Inside, you are asked to pay by bank transfer, a tool that Airbnb does not accept
Do not communicate outside the site: Do not communicate via email or Whatsapp and be wary of those who suggest you leave the portal to agree privately with the promise of a discount: it is the prelude to a request for a bank transfer. Furthermore, you will no longer be protected by the platform's guarantees. By remaining in the application chat, you can report suspicious behavior to customer service at any time.
Read the ad carefully: A well-curated ad is usually an indicator of a host and a house that are equally in order. Beware of a price that is too competitive for the week of Ferragosto, particularly vague descriptions, a total lack of reviews or a user profile created just a few days ago.
Airbnb is not a real estate agency: Be wary of anyone who tells you that they have “instructed the site” to show you the house. The site is in fact only an intermediary portal, equidistant from hosts and guests.
Never pay directly by bank transfer: if you are offered to send a deposit, do not trust it, it is against the terms of service. Pay exclusively by credit card on the site, and in no other way. Airbnb holds the entire amount from your card and forwards it to the host only 24 hours after check-in, giving you time to arrive at your destination and verify that the house is exactly as advertised.
Attention to the 'bait' accommodations: If once you arrive at your destination you are asked for a change of accommodation, obviously not up to the one booked, using as an excuse a sudden problem that arose in the original apartment that made it temporarily unusable, the thing best is to document everything and contact the platform immediately for a full refund.
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