Sparks Electrical News August 2017

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SPARKS
ELECTRICAL NEWS AUGUST 2017
F raudulent requests for quotations
(RFQs) and orders, supposedly from
government departments, are costing
South African business owners hundreds of
thousands of rands. Scammers send fictitious
RFQs from what appears to be a government
email address, using a fake RFQ form with the
government department’s logo and contact
details. The requests are usually ‘urgent’ and
the whole process is concluded within a short
space of time and, once the fraudsters have
the goods, they disappear, leaving the supplier
out of pocket with nothing to show for the
‘transaction’.
Port Elizabeth scam
It has come to the notice of the ECA(SA) that there
is a tender fraud syndicate operating in the Port
Elizabeth area. According to one of the companies
that was conned out of R282 000, a woman, who
called herself Nomsa Methembu, contacted the
company pretending to be from the Department
of Energy in Tshwane. She told the company she
needed a quote and sent a quote request. Once the
company had sent a quote, she sent them a ‘quote
acceptance’. The company supplied the goods and
Nomsa Methembu disappeared with a number of
solar inverters.
Lucas Bowles, regional director at the ECA(SA)
East South Cape region, explains the fraudster’s
modus operandi: “The ‘successful’ tenderer is asked
to order parts or equipment from the recommended
‘supplier’ who, supposedly, will deliver the goods
directly to the Government Department. The
tenderer is also asked to pay for the goods on the
basis that the tenderer would then submit a claim
to the Department once the goods have been
delivered to their offices. Needless to say, neither
the Government Department nor the supplier can
be traced after the tenderer has paid the ‘supplier’
for the goods,” says Bowles, adding: “They vanish
into thin air and you end up with an unhappy,
embarrassed and out-of-pocket ‘tenderer’ who has
to come to terms with being conned out of his hard-
earned money.
Bowles says the con artists lie low for a while
and then the process is repeated, using a different
Government Department logo and address for the
next victim. Bowles warns: “These tenders are part
of a huge scam by criminals who operate behind the
scenes and defraud unsuspecting individuals and
businesses and I urge members not to respond to
these emails under any circumstances.
“The SAPS and Hawks have been informed of
this and we hope that the guilty persons will soon be
apprehended, charged and put behind bars.”
In another recent scam, a Port Elizabeth con-
tractor paid R230 000 to a so-called govern-
ment department and lost all of his money to the
scammers.
Scam alert
A ‘scam alert’ on the websites of the National
Treasury Central Supplier Database for
Government, and the Department of Planning,
Monitoring and Evaluation issues this warning:
“The Department of Planning, Monitoring and
Evaluationwouldliketowarnprospectivesuppliers/
bidders about an alarming scam … which seeks
to request suppliers to submit quotations to the
Department or charge a non-refundable fee for
supplier registration forms, quotations or tender
documents. The DPME does not charge any fees
for supplier database registration forms, quotations
or tender documentation; therefore, all prospective
suppliers/bidders are cautioned to contact the
DPME when they suspect any scam​ as well as
when fictitious purchase orders placed for goods or
services and DPME’s name are being used.
Business owners are advised that, “… while
Government is working closely with authorities
to thwart these fraudsters, it still remains the
responsibility of the business owner to ensure the
tender is legal. Should you fall victim to a tender
scam, you cannot hold the relevant Department
liable for your losses.
If you do receive a tender request, and you are still
unsure about its legitimacy, it’s always wise to give
the mentioned Department a call (use the contact
number as listed on the Department’s website) to
verify. If you know of any fraudulent tender activities
please report them to the Tender Fraud hotline
0800 701 701. Confidentiality is guaranteed.”
The website warns companies to “verify all
the RFQs and orders by calling the respective
departments using the Departmental contact
details listed on their respective websites to verify
authenticity prior to responding to any RFQs or
orders to avoid falling prey to these fraudsters”.
The Department of Trade and Industry (dti)
has posted a scam alert on its website:
Bank details scam
Scammers have devised other ruses to con
people out of their money. In February this year, the
Financial and Assert Forfeiture Investigation (FAFI)
Unit of the Hawks recovered R2,2-million that was
defrauded from Amatole Water in East London.
According to Hawks spokesman, Lieutenant
Colonel Robert Netshiunda‚ Amatole Water had
contracted Malambo Construction to render
services. However, before Amatole Water could pay
the construction company, Amatole Water received
what looked like genuine correspondence from the
service provider informing them of a change in their
banking details. Amatole Water then transferred an
amount of R2.2-million to the newly provided bank
account but were perplexed when representatives
from Malambo Construction enquired about when
their money would be paid.
It was then discovered that someone had
fraudulently changed Malambo Construction’s
banking details without their consent. FAFI, in
collaboration with the Financial Intelligence Centre
(FIC), traced the account and recovered the money.
An investigation was launched to trace the people
behind the fraud.
CONTRACTORS’ CORNER
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ECA(SA) WARNS ELECTRICAL INDUSTRY: BEWARE OF SCAMMERS
By Erika van Zyl, national communications manager, ECA(SA)