An oil company in the Philippines warned the public against circulating fake social media posts that use its brand identity.
Petron Corporation issued two separate advisories about these online scams that use its logo and name on different social media platforms.
In an advisory on March 3, Petron said that fake promotions on Facebook claimed it was handing out fuel vouchers worth P7,000 as supposedly part of its 90th anniversary.
Senders of this Facebook post invited people to click a link that leads to a suspicious website where the supposed prize money can be redeemed.
To make it look legitimate, they used the logo of Petron and a screenshot of a webpage with a big “Congratulations” greeting to those who’ll click the link.
Petron also attached image copies of these posts on the infographic that accompanied its advisory.
In the infographic, Petron said that it is neither conducting surveys nor awarding cash prizes.
“We enjoin the public to be vigilant against online scammers. We are not conducting any surveys or awarding cash prizes. All our products, promos and raffles are only posted on our official website and social media accounts listed below,” it said.
Petron provided the links to its official social media accounts in the infographic.
“Kindly report any suspicious activity to Talk2Us@petron.com,” the company further said.
The fake social media advertisements surfaced around the same time the government announced that it has allotted P3 billion worth of fuel subsidies to the transport sector.
Reports said that this was part of the government’s overall “ayuda” allotment worth P26.6 billion to help vulnerable sectors cope with the rising prices of food and other basic commodities.
In another advisory on March 8, meanwhile, Petron, reminded the public about its official social media accounts to prevent becoming victims of phishing and other scams.
“A friendly reminder to everyone to be careful of scams and fake news circulating online. Prevent from clicking suspicious links and answering phishing surveys that did not come from Petron’s official platforms. Always look for the blue verified check badge,” the oil refiner said.
Moreover, Petron also attached a link to its cyber protection webpage that listed guidelines on how the public can protect themselves against different online schemes.
The different tips and guidelines for the company’s cyber protection were listed on its Cyber Protection – Petron section.