The Covid-19 pandemic did nothing to affect sales. If anything, purchasing of gold, especially online, has actually increased significantly ever since the movement control order was enforced last year.
One can easily browse and purchase, without the hassle of long queues, on many online platforms.
Unfortunately, this has made such platforms a target for online scammers.
The Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) has reported a sudden increase in online gold scams, with 37 cases recorded in the first three months this year, resulting in losses amounting to RM239,530.
According to Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Zainuddin Yaacob, 21 cases involving RM148,444 losses were reported in 2019. This rose to 44 cases with RM261,954 losses in 2020.
Following this worrying trend, Federation of the Associations of Malaysian Jewellers and Goldsmith president Steven Siow Dek Kuen issued a reminder to the public to shop at long-standing or reputable brick-and-mortar stores.
Wan Nurliana Aida Wan Mhd Kamal, a trader at Ayden Gold, agrees. She said that even though her shop had started selling online, both seller and buyer must proceed with caution to prevent fraud.
“We must first establish if the gold shop exists physically. When we deal with an agent, the person doesn’t have a shop.
“Therefore, we need to find out the gold brand’s headquarters to verify the agent’s credentials.”
Besides that, Wan Nurliana said the marketing or promotional method, whether online or in-store, can be used as a guide when purchasing gold.
“When there are new stocks, we will post it on social media like Telegram and Facebook to promote it.
“If they do plenty of live marketing on social media, they can be trusted. But if they lag in marketing on social media, we need to be wary of them.”
According to her, sellers and buyers must play their roles to avoid being duped as criminals are always looking to take advantage of any situation.
“When doing live (online promotion), my clients sometimes post their mobile contact numbers and these criminals (scammers) will immediately WhatsApp them impersonating me — as Nana from Ayden Gold,” she added.
Wan Nurliana acknowledged the advantage of online sales in helping physical stores meet their target, but is still cautious about the vulnerabilities of online platforms when pitching sales.
She also admits to having received a fake online transfer receipt from a buyer.
“Many are jobless during this pandemic and committing online fraud can be the easiest and shortest way to earn some money. We need to be very careful,” she said.
Buyer Anisa Shamsaimon said even though the trend of buying gold online is on the increase on social media, she would rather shop at the physical stores.
“I tried buying online but did not find it a satisfying experience. I prefer to walk into the shops where I can hold and try on the jewellery. That’s more satisfying,” she said.
The opposite is true for Ahmad Imran Rose Din, a buyer who would rather make his purchase online from the comfort of his home, skipping road traffic and parking issues.
“If we want to ascertain the reliability of the seller, just Google the said business and check if it has a physical shop presence or not. We can also look up the available reviews on the seller,” he said.