One of our team here in Unbox Diaries spotted a somewhat sketchy yet enticing sponsored ad on Facebook at apparently offers an Infinix device for less than a thousand pesos
We humans love free stuff and we can’t deny that if getting it free isn’t an option, maybe buying it at the cheapest possible price is the next best thing. But sometimes, us being cheapskates can get us into trouble.
That’s why scammers and con artists exist because of that fact, people falling to a ‘budol’ scheme isn’t entirely true. Swarms of scammers in online e-commerce sites like Shopee, Lazada, and FB Marketplace are rampant that if did not analyze what you are intending to buy, you can get ripped off.
Our editor-in-chief here in Unbox Diaries spotted an ad on Facebook while browsing through his news feed that caught our attention, the deal looks promising, since it is sponsored and even peddled to us by Zucc himself. So we had to bite the bullet and satisfy our curiosity.
This ad was found on Facebook under the Sponsored Ads section in FB’s desktop version. The ad indicates itself as a “summer giveaway” and the picture states that a “brand new” Infinix Note 12 is offered at a whopping 97% off, bringing its price down to a very manageable ₱937 pesos. All aboard the hype train, everyone?
The photo also indicates that the old price is ₱8,499 which has been crossed out. There’s also text stating a chance to win an Infinix Note 12 as well with Cash-On-Delivery and Free Shipping Nationwide options.
To be honest, it’s very confusing how the constant barrage of information contradicts what they’re establishing in the first place. What are they saying? First, there’s this overly discounted phone, now we have the chance to win it, and now– it’s COD and Free Shipping. Very sketchy, but we need to dig deeper.
Down to the rabbit hole we go as we click the link to “freeph.shop“. After a couple of seconds, it opened up a window showing this:
Analyzing what we have here, now it’s getting more sketchy. Where’s the Infinix Note 12? Why did it morph into an Infinix Smart 6? Looking beneath the hastily put-together thumbnail, the webpage tried to trick us into thinking that we are on the official Infinix website.
Hey, Infinix might be selling affordable phones for everyone but their webpage and marketing budget aren’t equivalent to a bottle of Coke Mismo and two pan de coco bread as we had witnessed right here.
We also notice random pop-ups of people like “Christoper Alimano” (not Alamano, that’s a whole different kind of person) and Shalome Gomez “purchasing their ₱937 Infinix Note 12 err, Smart 6″. These aren’t real people and probably came from name-generated AI sites with photos grabbed from the net.
Before we click the “Click Here to Buy” button, we sifted through the site and found ‘comments’ from customers who were happy with their “budol deal”. The comments look legitimate, but still, the air of skepticism is still present and it will take time to convince us that this site isn’t a scam.
We also found a Contact Us section with a Newport Mall, Pasay City address, and two cellphone numbers. Hmmm, okay… But you can just make up numbers as these phone numbers aren’t receiving our calls as well.
Upon entering our made-up name and address in the form section, a prompt pops out and it looks like a phishing site that collects your data and sells it to advertisers, and you’ll wake up one day with lots of messages from randos selling you a bunch of stuff.
Our verdict? If this ad crossed your path, DO NOT CLICK AND ENGAGE WITH IT as this is clearly a scam website, taking advantage of people who are less fortunate in life by scamming and selling their information. Buy only from Infinix’s official website, and their Shopee and Lazada.
Be vigilant and trust your gut. If it doesn’t look right, it is probably because it is. Being scammed isn’t worth that thousand pesos deal at all.
