Deception by phone

Deception by phone

From Media Indonesia

Through a Jakarta newspaper on March 15, I sought the address
of a man from whom I could obtain information on the
accreditation of Global 21 vocational high school (SMK), which
had been seeking for about four years.

The next day, somebody going by the name of Soetiono Wibowo
claimed over the phone that he came from the secretariat of
higher education at the national education ministry and could
give me the accreditation certificate for SMK Global 21, on
condition that Rp 15 million be transferred to his bank account.

I responded by asking the caller to met me at a location of
his choosing, but he insisted that the money be paid first,
otherwise he would not help. As this was not a personal deal and
SMK Global 21 has mostly students from poor families, I refused
to pay the sum demanded.

With suspicion, I reported the case to the Jakarta vocational
school office and was told to ignore the demand because it was a
swindle attempt. Under current circumstances, unscrupulous people
are trying to benefit from every opportunity, so beware of such
tricks.

ROBERTO BANGUN
Jakarta