{"id":1082,"date":"2017-03-28T09:22:32","date_gmt":"2017-03-28T07:22:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/?post_type=did_you_know&p=1082"},"modified":"2025-07-20T00:45:57","modified_gmt":"2025-07-19T22:45:57","slug":"scammers-use-namfisa-as-biat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/scammers-use-namfisa-as-biat\/","title":{"rendered":"Scammers Use NAMFISA As Bait"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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JOB OFFERING SCAMMERS USING NAMFISA AS BAIT<\/h3><\/span><\/div>
In a previous edition of the Consumer Education
\nBulletin, the NAMFISA Chief Executive Officer alerted the public to a scam doing the rounds, using the name of NAMFISA as bait.
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How the Scam Works<\/h3><\/span><\/div>
The modus operandi of the scammers is to place an advertisement in local newspapers, listing a number of jobs on offer. Upon enquiry, members of the public are invited for \u2018interviews\u2019 and are told there and then that they are successful. They are, however, given a condition that they should first acquire a registration certificate from NAMFISA before they are confirmed as employees.
\n\nDesperate jobseekers are then told that in order for them to receive the registration certificate, they need to pay a certain amount of money into the bank account of the would-be employers. This amount, according to information obtained from some applicants, could amount to N$3,000 per person.
\n\nJobseekers, who are in most cases oblivious of what is happening to them, will go to every length to find the money, often borrowing it from family or friends. Some even cause their family members to borrow money from microlenders (cash loans) and naturally such loans are to be repaid with interest.
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False Proof and Disappearance<\/h3><\/span><\/div>
\nAnother trick of the scammers is to tell the jobseekers or applicants that they must fax their bank deposit slips to a certain fax number and then meet their prospective employers at a certain location.
\n\nAfter all the eagerness, energy and enthusiasm with which the jobseekers go through the process of getting the money and depositing it into the given back account, they would then attempt to reach their prospective employer to get further information on commencement date, salary and other benefits.
\n\nWhen they do eventually call for this information, jobseekers find that the number they are calling no long exists on the operator\u2019s network. When they visit the office where they first met their prospective employers, they are told that the people are no longer doing business from that office and that, in fact, they merely rented the space for a few days. When the jobseekers then rush to the bank to retrieve their money, they find that the account into which they have paid the money has been closed and the scammers have withdrawn all the money.
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Aftermath and Misplaced Blame<\/h3><\/span><\/div>
A number of Namibian youth have fallen prey to this scam and, as a last resort, they approach NAMFISA to claim their registration or their money back since
\nthey have the mistaken belief that their money has been paid to NAMFISA for certification. The whole experience ends very badly for the applicants who realise too late that they have been scammed. They now sit with the burden of having to repay those they loaned money from and to continue their pursuit of job opportunities.
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NAMFISA\u2019s Warning<\/h3><\/span><\/div>
NAMFISA therefore advises members of the public that the Authority does not issue certificates to any individual who applies for a job as a driver, secretary, legal assistant and\/or security guard at any private company. Any member of the public who suspects that an individual or individuals are using
\nNAMFISA\u2019s name to entice people with job offers in return for payment should immediately report the matter to the police or approach NAMFISA directly for swift action to be taken.
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Something to think about<\/h3><\/span><\/div>

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\u201cThe time to save money is when
\nyou have some.\u201d
\n\u2013 Joe Moore\n<\/blockquote><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Summary<\/h3><\/span><\/div>
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Job Offering Scammers Using NAMFISA as Bait<\/h3><\/span><\/div>
In a previous edition of the Consumer Education Bulletin, the NAMFISA Chief Executive Officer alerted the public to a scam circulating in Namibia, where fraudsters are using NAMFISA\u2019s name to lure jobseekers into paying money for fake employment opportunities.<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Modus Operandi of the Scammers<\/h5><\/div>
The scam typically follows this pattern:<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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  • <\/span>Fake job advertisements are placed in local newspapers, listing several available positions.<\/li>
  • <\/span>Interested individuals are invited for interviews and told on the spot that they are successful.<\/li>
  • <\/span>The "condition": they must first obtain a 'registration certificate' from NAMFISA before final employment confirmation.<\/li>
  • <\/span>They are instructed to pay a registration fee, reportedly up to N$3,000, into a bank account controlled by the scammers.<\/li>
  • <\/span>Applicants are told to fax their deposit slip to a specific number and meet the "employer" at an arranged location.<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    Impact on Desperate Jobseekers<\/h5><\/div>
    Victims\u2014many of whom are unaware of the scam\u2014go to great lengths to pay the required amount:<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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    • <\/span>Borrowing from family or friends.<\/li>
    • <\/span>Even convincing relatives to take out microlender loans with high interest.<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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      <\/h5><\/div>
      After making the payment:<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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      • <\/span>Phone numbers stop working.<\/li>
      • <\/span>Office spaces are vacated (often only temporarily rented).<\/li>
      • <\/span>Bank accounts are closed after funds are withdrawn.<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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        <\/h5><\/div>
        When victims realise they\u2019ve been defrauded, many approach NAMFISA, wrongly believing the payment was for a legitimate certificate issued by the Authority.\n\nThey are left:<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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        • <\/span>Emotionally and financially devastated.<\/li>
        • <\/span>Indebted, with no job, no money, and no recourse.<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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          NAMFISA\u2019s Official Position<\/h5><\/div>
          NAMFISA does NOT issue certificates to individuals applying for the following jobs at private companies: Driver, Secretary, Legal Assistant, Security Guard. Any claim linking job applications to a certificate from NAMFISA is false.<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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          What You Should Do<\/h5><\/div>
          If you are approached by someone claiming to offer a job in exchange for a \u201cNAMFISA certificate\u201d or payment:<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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          • <\/span> Do not pay anything.<\/li>
          • <\/span>Report the incident immediately to the Namibian Police.<\/li>
          • <\/span>You may also contact NAMFISA directly for verification or to report suspicious activity.<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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            <\/h5><\/div>
            Let\u2019s work together to stop scammers from exploiting vulnerable Namibians.<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            JOB OFFERING SCAMMERS USING NAMFISA AS BAIT In a previous edition of the Consumer Education Bulletin, the NAMFISA Chief Executive Officer alerted the public to a scam doing the rounds,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[424],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-didyouknow"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1082"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35832,"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1082\/revisions\/35832"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.namfisa.com.na\/educates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}