The Bank of Thailand warns of a new scam targeting online second-hand goods sales groups, advising people to remember the mantra "Lure-Accelerate-Confidential" to protect themselves from fraudsters.

The Bank of Thailand indicates that "investment scams and online sales scams" remain the leading forms of fraud. It also warns of a new scam targeting sellers of second-hand goods, advising caution and recommending the use of the "entice-accelerate-secret" strategy to prevent financial loss. The Bank emphasizes that you should never give your One-Time Password (OTP) to anyone.

May 10, 2569 – Ms. Oramont Chantaphan, Senior Director, Financial Consumer Protection Policy Division, Bank of Thailand (BOT). Speaking at a seminar. How could such a large sum of money disappear? : Understanding scams and mitigating risks at Money Expo 2026 Bangkok. The statistics on financial fraud are currently showing an improving trend, with the value of losses decreasing from the previous high of 2-3 billion baht per month to approximately 1 billion baht per month. This translates to losses of over 10 billion baht per year, down from a previous high of over 30 billion baht per year.

The most common scams that Thais fell victim to in the first quarter of 2026, ranked in terms of damage value, are:

• First place goes to Investip, which accounts for 19% of the total, with estimated damages of approximately 944 million baht.
• Second place goes to fraudulent schemes, at 18.6%, with damages estimated at approximately 923 million baht.
• Third place goes to call center scams, accounting for 16.4% of the total and causing approximately 812 million baht in damages.

While the number of cases showed that...

• The number one case is fraudulent sales, accounting for 62.9% of the total, or approximately 60,000 cases.
• Secondly, fraudulent employment accounted for 9.1%, or approximately 8,600 cases.
• Thirdly, fraudulent prizes accounted for 5.8%, or approximately 5,400 cases.

Data reveals that criminal gangs are preying on people of all ages, particularly those aged 18-20 and above, who are often targeted through "job scams" or "online sales scams." Meanwhile, those aged 40 and above frequently face romance scams, and older adults are often tricked into investing.
Ms. Oramont further stated that, however, currently there are scams targeting second-hand goods sales, where kind-hearted people become victims. These scammers disguise themselves as second-hand sales, exploiting people's need for extra income as a weakness.

A common scam involves forced registration. Scammers trick potential sellers into joining a Line group, claiming they need to transfer money for "shop registration" or "account verification." Within the group, accomplices will demonstrate the transfer process to prove it's legitimate. If a victim makes even a small mistake, such as forgetting a reference code, the scammers will psychologically reprimand the victim and pressure them, threatening that failure will deprive others in the group of their opportunities.

"There are case studies where victims with doctoral degrees were deceived into losing over 300,000 baht, and some lost as much as 15 million baht, simply because they wanted to open an account to sell goods."

Ms. Oramont further stated that knowing when to be suspicious is the most important first line of defense in dealing with scammers. Nowadays, criminals use psychology and technology, such as AI, to meticulously analyze the weaknesses of their victims. The immediate thing to stop and think about is when you encounter warning signals following the "Lure-Accelerate-Conceal" mantra:

• mule Exaggerated offers or unusually attractive benefits are used to entice people.
• speed Scammers will create pressure and coercion to make you panic and transfer money immediately, for example, by claiming your account will be suspended or you will face legal consequences if you don't act now.
• secret It was claimed to be a confidential matter not to be told to anyone, so that the victim would not have time to consult those around them or verify the information.

Ms. Oramont further stated that another crucial warning is: Never give your OTP (One-Time Password) to anyone. The most important aspect of financial security is the OTP, which is like the "key to your house" or "key to your safe."

"If the transaction is found to have not used an OTP, the bank may still be able to assist in recovering the money. However, if the victim personally provided the OTP code to the fraudster, this constitutes identity verification and transaction approval by the account holder, making recovery very difficult."

Ms. Oramont further stated that if you become a victim of fraud and lose money, don't give up or abandon hope, but also don't have overly high expectations. Currently, there are assistance processes designed specifically to care for victims, such as...

Report the incident as soon as possible via the 1441 hotline. The first thing to do if you realize you've been scammed is to call 1441, a phone number that connects both the police and banks. This system helps to trace the money trail and immediately suspend the receiving accounts. The sooner you report it, the greater the chance of preventing the money from leaving the system, even though statistics show that money can be transferred out as quickly as 3 minutes.

Exercise your rights under the Cyber ​​Security Act, which allows officials to coordinate between banks to immediately trace the money trail for victims.

The most important point is that you must file a police report. If you do not follow the legal process of filing a report, you will not be entitled to a refund later. Once the assets are recovered by the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO), the officials will only consider returning the money to the victims who have filed a police report.

"Even highly educated individuals, such as doctors or senior executives, can fall victim to scammers. Making mistakes doesn't mean you're unintelligent; it's because these scammers are experts in deception, using psychology to exploit our weaknesses and panic."