Aldi's urgent warning after 4,000 Aussies duped by grocery scam
Aldi has issued an urgent warning to Aussies to remain vigilant as a new scam is currently circulating online promising free boxes of groceries.
More than 4,000 Australians are believed to have fallen victim to the scam, which was shared on Facebook and promises shoppers a free box of Aldi groceries, as well as the chance to win $500 in gift cards.
The Facebook post, shared by a fake "Aldi Fans" Facebook page, has already received more than 15,000 likes, dozens of comments and shares by Aussie shoppers.
To the untrained eye, the Facebook post appears to be genuine, with its use of Aldi branding and the supermarket's company logo in the profile picture.
Aldi urges Aussies to remain vigilant against scammers
Aldi Australia has confirmed that the post is indeed a phishing scam aimed at luring unknowing victims into providing their personal details.
A spokesperson for Aldi Australia has urged customers to be vigilant to protect themselves from scammers.
"We encourage Australians to always remain wary of any offers seen on unofficial social media pages or websites, and to report any scams to Scamwatch," the spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia.
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Scam targets struggling Aussies amid rising cost of groceries
The scam appears to target vulnerable Australians who may be struggling amid the rising cost of living with the promise of free groceries.
"With the cost of living going through the roof, we thought we would help out this summer," reads the post.
It goes on to say that Aldi will send each person who shares and comments one of the food boxes shown in the picture.
"Each box is full of essential groceries worth $50. We're also placing a $500 voucher into 25 boxes," the post continues.
After Facebook users have liked and shared the post, scammers from the fake Aldi page then contact them to ask that they fill in their private details on an external site.
This allows scammers to gain access to users' credit card information, as they claim the user needs to pay for shipping for their free box of Aldi groceries.
Aldi Facebook scammers strike again
Unfortunately, this isn't the first time scammers have targeted struggling Aussies with the promise of free Aldi groceries and gift cards.
In February, a scam circulated under the same fake Aldi Fans Facebook account, offering customers the chance to score a $750 shopping voucher.
The scam, which urged shoppers to share the post to five Facebook groups, was shared more than 3,600 times in less than 24 hours by unsuspecting shoppers.
Fortunately, Aldi quickly warned customers about the scam circulating on social media and alerted the platform.
"We advise everyone not to interact with these posts. We have reported this issue to Facebook, who are working to resolve this," an Aldi spokesperson wrote on Facebook at the time.
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