At least six Facebook (FB) pages pretending to be official channels of WalterMart Supermarket claim that the grocery store chain is giving away prizes such as gift bags, smartphones, and shopping vouchers to celebrate its July anniversary.
These are all fake. The clickbait registration links direct to ad-laden websites.
“This is to inform the PUBLIC that some people are pretending to be WalterMart Supermarket, making fake accounts, and offering people promos not related to WalterMart Supermarket. If you have been contacted by any of these fake accounts, please report the page immediately,” WalterMart’s official Facebook page said in a July 26 post.
WalterMart celebrates its anniversary every October, not July, as the posts claimed.
The fake posts, which appeared from July 26 to 29, urged everyone to reshare and write “Congratulations” or “Happy Birthday” in the comments section to claim the non-existent prizes. The captions read:
“💛🎊 Kumusta sa lahat, Para ipagdiwang ang kaarawan ni @WalterMart Supermarket. Lahat ng magsusulat ng “Congratulations” sa aming PAGE bago ang Hulyo 30, 2024 ay makakatanggap ng mga eksklusibong premyo sa anyo ng mga espesyal na gift bag, telepono, cash at shopping voucher. Good luck! 🎂🎉”
(Greetings to everyone! To celebrate WalterMart Supermarket’s anniversary, anyone who will write “Congratulations” on our PAGE before July 30, 2024 will receive exclusive prizes in the form of special gift bags, smartphones, cash, and shopping vouchers. Good luck!)
In the comments section, the FB impostors shared a web link to a bogus website where netizens could supposedly claim their prizes. Clicking on the “Register here” in the bogus website opens up multiple advertisements.
VERA Files Fact Check observed and debunked the same modus in another scam last year claiming to give away Toyota Fortuner and Hilux vehicles.
The fake posts garnered a total of 3,721 reactions, 16,722 comments, and 15,909 shares. These appeared a day after WalterMart announced it would have a three-day sale at the end of July.
