BLABLACAR SCAM. Several users of the famous carpooling service have recently been victims of a phishing scam. Rare cases, but which should call for caution.
As we know, crooks never lack imagination to trap their victims. Witness, the phishing campaign which has been affecting users of BlaBlaCar, the famous carpooling service for several weeks, by cleverly exploiting the functions of the platform and WhatsApp messaging. The principle behind this phishing scam is simple, as explained The Dispatch that followed the case. The scammer offers a ride on BlaBlaCar at an attractive price, below average. Carpoolers reserve their place by paying for it normally on the site or via the application. Before the announced departure, and usually at the last moment, the scammer cancels the trip. Passengers are then automatically reimbursed by BlaBlaCar, as is always the case for a cancellation. So far, nothing unusual. Except that, in the meantime, the scammer has recovered the contact details – more exactly, the mobile phone number – of his victims: a normal procedure which allows the driver to communicate with his carpoolers to organize themselves. He then contacts his victims via WhatsApp, again offering them his trip. Most often claiming a problem with installing the application following an alleged change of phone, it provides them with a link allowing them to book and pay for the trip again. A link intended to be provided by the BlaBlaCar support service. In reality, it is a tricked link that sends to a page imitating the platform and which obviously only serves to recover the payment of the unfortunate victims.
Several users thus deceived have come forward on Twitter, recounting their mishap. The process, which is not new, is similar. Asked about the subject, Adeline Prévost, press relations manager at BlaBlaCar, specifies that cases remain rare. “These are situations that we monitor, and as soon as reports are made, we immediately block the affected profiles”, she specifies. And to recall some elementary rules to avoid falling into the trap. First of all, never pay anything outside the platform: everything must be done on the site Official BlaBlaCar or with the BlaBlaCar app, which are completely secure. Then, it is essential, before any reservation, to examine the profile of the driver proposing a trip, to check his seniority and the opinions left by passengers. It is safer to choose a confirmed member. And beware of trips displayed at abnormally low prices. Finally, in the event of a proven scam – if you are a victim, in particular… -, it is advisable to immediately report the scammer to BlaBlaCar by going to the profile of the scammer and selecting Report this member to be removed and that the associated information be reviewed to avoid re-enrollment.