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Ihsan Abdul Salam describes himself as a “loyal” buyer of Flight Centre, reserving tickets with the worldwide journey firm since 1995.
However when he went to a Vancouver department of the agency to select up tickets to Brazil he had booked via a advisor on-line, he was in for a shock — the $2,280 reserving didn’t exist.
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He’d been scammed by an impostor web site, one in every of scores that the agency says it has been has been making an attempt to stamp out since final summer season.
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Flight Centre says it has had greater than 200 fraudulent listings taken down up to now, the search outcomes having appeared in on-line searches for “Flight Centre” throughout Canada
Salam had Googled Flight Centre to e-book tickets to Sao Paulo to go to his girlfriend in September. He mentioned he clicked on the primary web site to pop up, then spoke to one in every of their “journey consultants” on the cellphone, who took his reserving and cost.
However one thing appeared odd.
“It was very unusual … they advised me ‘don’t name anyone, we are able to ship you the unique ticket, simply give us time,”‘ mentioned Salam.
“I felt one thing was unsuitable.”
Salam mentioned from earlier expertise, Flight Centre would ship an e mail with a ticket as quickly as he hung up the cellphone with a advisor, however this time, his ticket by no means arrived.
So he went to Flight Centre’s Kitsilano department, the place he obtained the dangerous information — the positioning was a rip-off, and he wasn’t the primary sufferer.
“I felt dangerous for all of the individuals which have been on this scenario,” Salam mentioned.
Chadd Andre, govt vice-president of Flight Centre Canada, mentioned the agency had observed fraudulent listings popping up on-line since final summer season.
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Toronto-based Andre mentioned he occurred to be on the Kitsilano department to debate educating clients about fraudulent websites when he observed Salam stroll in to hunt assist final yr.
Andre mentioned listening to about clients’ experiences prompted his staff to boost consciousness of the fraudsters.
Flight Centre shared examples of faux web sites. One is labelled “Flight Heart,” not “Flight Centre,” and incorporates a blue and white color scheme, not the crimson and white utilized by the genuine web site.
It’s not clear the place the pretend websites are primarily based, and Andre mentioned there are quite a few “dangerous actors” concerned, making it exhausting to eradicate all of them.
He mentioned Flight Centre and its authorized staff had been working with search engines like google, corresponding to Google, to take down pretend listings.
“But it surely does appear simply as rapidly as we flag new listings that there are new ones popping up,” mentioned Andre.
The genuine Flight Centre web site now carries a outstanding warning about fakes.
Salam mentioned he needed to “swallow the ache” of paying for pretend tickets, and he nonetheless went to Brazil in October and managed to have an excellent time.
He mentioned he deliberate to go to his household in Dubai this yr.
“This time I’ll go to the workplace and I’ll see the individuals there,” mentioned Salam.
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