Scams like Kita Boleh Travel go more professional with registered mail, glossy pamphlets, attractive websites

The conversation went something like this: “Hi, I’ve won second prize on one of your scratchies.”

Super excited conman (in broken English and after answering the phone in Malay): “Oh, wow! Congratulations. That’s a great prize. I’m happy for you.

Me: “So what do I need to do claim the prize?”

Conman (even more excited): “There’s a few security checks we need to go through …”

And this is where, if you’re not careful, you can be fleeced for thousands.

So many of us are well-trained at spotting scams that arrive in our email inboxes or via texts on our mobile phones.

But it’s harder to be sceptical when it arrives in your letterbox via registered mail from Malaysia, has the stamps to go with it and even a sender’s address on the back of the brown envelope.

On opening the envelope, your guard can drop even further when you find a wonderfully put together glossy brochure spruiking the wonders of various holiday experiences across Asia.

There is even a spiel about the group — Kita Boleh Travel — and the benefits to tourists.

But here’s the kicker — two scratchcards are included to celebrate the company’s success over the past seven years.

Like the brochure, they are printed on good quality paper and even have “7th Anniversary” embossed in gold lettering.

The terms and conditions on the back are in the usual wording and, like the brochure, don’t have a spelling error or word (think broken English) out of place.

It all hammers home that this must be legit.

And, of course, one of the scratchies is a winner.

In my case it was second prize of $US185,000 ($282,000), of which there were only two to be won.

Now my radar was shouting SCAM! But it was hard to find fault with what I’d been sent … and your brain starts to wonder: “What if?”

“What if” for me was getting online and checking it out.

It wasn’t hard to find a nicely presented Kita Boleh Travel website, complete with information about the company, news and destinations.

But there was nowhere to book and everything eventually pointed to having to contact them.

So I sent them an email, letting them know I was a winner.

I quickly got a reply, informing me that I needed to call them (or send them my phone number so they could call back) to “undergo an additional verification process to ensure the authenticity of the winning ticket”.

I was hesitant to call them but there’s a story here — or maybe even riches (NOT!).

I was greeted by someone in Indonesian, who quickly realised I spoke English and changed tact.

After their wonder of such a fantastic win, they put me through to their claims division, who (after more exuberance) expertly took the “winning” ticket’s serial number.

At this point, I think the con artist at the other end became suspicious of my intentions (too many questions) and let me know that they would call me back after checking the ticket.

The conversation was leaning towards sending them ID documents and transferring money (usually about $5000) to “cover the tax required” by the Malaysian Government before the prize can be claimed.

If you get to this point, you are well and truly being scammed and need to hang up immediately.

Interestingly, a few days and fresh eyes does point out some giveaways.

For instance, the amazing brochure, while touting travel in Asia, appears to have a photo of a woman sitting in front of the Colosseum in Rome.

Another shot shows an inviting vista of what looks to be the type of picturesque village you’d find in Italy.

And for a company that appears to take great pride in presentation, the email back doesn’t have the company’s name capped for each title (Kita boleh travel) — an unlikely oversight from a company that, at first appearance, gives the impression of high standards.

The website doesn’t have a secure payment option and any other enquiries have to be made by contacting them direct — which is where any scams they are running begin.

Putting the web link into Scam Detector is also a good practice. In this case, it rated Kita Boleh Travel’s website an extremely poor 10.1 out of 100: “Untrustworthy. Risky. Danger.”

Consumer Protection’s WA ScamNet team have warned of the rise in scams such as this one, with the latest versions being Klang Valley Tours, Travel Expert Tours and Global Line Travel. They can add Kita Boleh Travel to the list.

“We often warn about the scams that arrive via email, phone and social media but it’s important not to forget they can land in our letterbox too,” Commerce Minister Sue Ellery said.

“Scammers are smart — they know by dressing up this con with a very professional, expensive-looking brochure, people may be more likely to think the scratchie prize money is real.

“Don’t be fooled though. If you receive these packages, throw them straight in the bin.

“Do not provide personal information and remember, you should never have to pay money to receive a legitimate prize.”

Basically, if it’s too good to be true, don’t do it.