Beware of Pet Scams: SFO Emails Target Pet Lovers
Recent emails seemingly coming from the San Francisco International Airport that target pet lovers are a scam, say SFO officials. The emails advertise rare pets for sale and come from the SFO "Pet Department" or "Pet Care and Vaccination Department," entities that don't actually exist. Email recipients who send money to the mysterious sources never receive the pets they think they're buying, and after they send an initial payment they're often billed for more expenses -- vaccinations that supposedly must be obtained to protect the health of the animal.
Being taken in by a scam like this is not only financially damaging, it's emotionally upsetting as well. Scammers are targeting a caring sector of the population and taking advantage of them (a similar scheme that used the Atlanta airport was reported back in 2009). Watch out for messages containing spelling errors, threatening language, and anything that sounds "too good to be true."
People are advised to ignore these emails and anything that resembles them; Here at PetRelocation.com we advise against buying pets from unknown parties and avoiding any kind of scenario that involves wiring money. Puppy scams are unfortunately a persistent problem, so remember to be smart, and if possible, adopt from your local shelter.
(photo by tintedglass/Flickr)