‘DM your details’: Travellers warned of scam airline accounts as Iran war disrupts flights | Scams
toOur flight has been delayed due to the Middle East crisis and you want to know what’s going on, so you turn to the internet for an answer. You find a social media account run by the airline you’re booking with, post a question, and get a response offering help.
You’re asked to send a direct message with details, which seems reasonable. A conversation ensues and you are asked to provide your phone number because you may be compensated. This is where everything starts to go wrong: Instead of giving you money, you get it taken away. Although it looked official, the account that responded was a scam.
Fake airline accounts are not new, but scammers are taking advantage of the disruption caused by the Iran war to target people around the world and scam people using the names of carriers hardest hit by the crisis.
Santander says it has already heard from customers who suffered cancellations and delays and were later caught by scammers. Customers on social media site X say they are being contacted through accounts purportedly operated by Qatar Airways, Etihad and Emirates airlines.
Chris Ainsley, head of fraud risk management at Santander UK, says: “Fraudsters are quick to take advantage of uncertainty, and travel disruptions caused by conflict in the Middle East are no exception.
“We are seeing criminals targeting people seeking refunds for travel and holiday bookings, sending them a link to supposedly receive a refund, but instead people’s accounts are charged.”
What does fraud look like
The scammer has created an account that appears to be a legitimate account for an airline; usually the logo is at the top. The name of the account may include the name of the airline or be a generic name such as support team, rapid response team, or guest services maintenance.
You may be asked to share your email address or phone number, or no details may be included in the account description.
You may come across this account when looking for help, but scammers often scan social media for travelers trying to contact legitimate accounts and respond by offering them help. This can make it difficult to detect that the message is from a scammer.
You will be asked to share your information via direct message. The scammer will then contact you claiming to be from the airline and say they can issue a refund. They will send you a link to a money transfer app and ask you to use your digital wallet to accept the refund. Once you have done all this, they will debit your account instead of paying you.
What should we do
Be very wary of social media accounts that you cannot find on the airline’s website or another source you know to be legitimate. If an airline has a separate social media account for customer service questions, that account will often include the name in the description on the main account.
If any account responds to your post, check the name to make sure it’s the real account.
When you click on a fake account’s page, the number of followers will be very low, usually in the single digits. This is a red flag.
Do not hand over payment details or passwords. Etihad shared a post Notice to customers on X It says: “Etihad will never ask for passwords, single-use codes, payment details or any sensitive information via social media messages.” If you are asked for any of these, do not hand them over.
“Always look for updates on the airline’s or travel companies’ official website or the Department of State’s website,” says Ainsley.
