Winning car SMS scam warning

Fraudsters are once again using electronic methods to extort money from unsuspecting victims.

A text message proclaiming that the recipient has won a brand new Toyota Land Cruiser is currently doing the rounds, according to Toyota South Africa's media relations officer Sharon Garson.

"We received calls from people wanting to find out about the competition. Many of the other calls, however, were taken at dealerships before they reached us at head office," she said.

Toyota SA issued a statement on Tuesday that said Toyota Kenya, which was mentioned in the message as the vehicle's sponsor, "is in no way associated with Toyota South Africa".

The message allegedly requests recipients to deposit money into a bank account in order to pay for delivery costs of the "free" vehicle.

"This message is absolute rubbish. I also heard recently that another fake SMS about winning a vehicle was also sent out," Garson said.

Daily News