– We receive reports all the time, but see that fraud with fake housing ads is increasing, especially in connection with admissions to universities, says Lotta Mauritzon, national coordinator against fraud at the police.
The student Moa is one of many who have been affected. She was exposed to a housing scam on Facebook, it cost her SEK 30,000.
The scammer used a QR code, an approach that is now on the rise. In the lessor’s profile, it was stated that she worked for various companies, including Klarna, which instilled confidence in Moa when the question of credit control came up. They also discussed for hours on chat.
– The usual thing is that the process is very forced and that the person has to pay rent in advance. We saw QR codes as an approach some years ago, but now it is increasing again, says Lotta Mauritzon.
New legislation underway
Many of the frauds take place on social media or pages such as Blocket, and the detection rate is low when it comes to ad fraud. Some scammers continue to be active despite warnings to the site but that may now change.
DSA – digital service act is a new EU legislation that is expected to become relevant in the autumn. It means that online platforms have a greater responsibility towards consumers. However, the legislation will not be relevant in Sweden for several years.
Hear Lotta Mauritzon tell you more about how you can protect yourself against fraudsters in the clip above.