A new scam that has been doing it rounds recently. Scammers claim that the SMS recipients are the lucky winners of a 2012 Ford Fiesta vehicle in a competition sponsored my electronics giant Samsung.

Last week Samsung Electronics South Africa issued a press release confirming that they’re not running this competition and warning consumers not to fall for this scam.

The scammers claim that in order to claim their new prize consumers are required to pay a fee for car and e-toll registration as well as insurance (which comes up to an amount of R2970). The scammers state that once payment is made the vehicle will be delivered in a maximum of 72 hours.

Consumers are encouraged not to act when they receive this scam SMS. Any SMSes that they receive regarding this fake competition should be reported to Inspector Elvis Hlungweni at the Randburg SAPS. He can be reached telephonically on 011 449 9055. The case number associated with this scam is 689 / 7 / 2012.

Alternatively consumers that receive this SMS can contact Samsung South Africa’s call centre directly on 0860 726 786. Consumers were also urged to take note that notice of official competitions will always be posted on the Samsung website.

Fake competition scams and SMS scams are not an entirely new concept. Junk Mail users have been targeted in similar ways before. Remember that Junk Mail will always post official competition notices on the Junk Mail Blog or on the Junk Mail Classifieds Facebook page. Also take note that ideally you should not be paying to claim a prize in a competition and that you should not be paying for an item that you have not inspected. Remember: Be Smart, Be Savvy, Be Safe.

Feel free to spread the word about this scam. Share this article with your friends on Facebook and Twitter. Sharing is caring after all. For more scam warnings, check out the Junk Mail Safety & Security page.