Cover image via @delectablebysu (Instagram)
Follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp for the latest stories and breaking news.
A local baker has issued a public warning to fellow small business owners after nearly falling victim to a scam involving a fake government official who placed a large order of gift boxes ahead of Deepavali
In a post on Instagram, Delectable By Su shared how her team received what appeared to be an urgent order from someone claiming to represent a government department.
She said the individual provided a name card and requested custom gift boxes to be delivered by Monday, 6 October.
"He gave us a name card which we cross-referenced on their official website that he was indeed as mentioned," Su wrote in her post.
Initially, everything appeared to check out. The baker issued an invoice stating that full payment must be made before delivery.
However, the supposed client claimed they could only make payment three days after delivery, and asked her to send her banking details to an "admin" email with a suspicious domain.
"Shouldn't it be from a .gov.my address?" she wondered, adding that this was the first red flag.
As suspicions grew, Su noticed inconsistencies in the way the "official" explained the government's ePerolehan system, a real online procurement platform for government agencies
"He didn't seem to know how to register for it himself," she noted.
The scam escalated when a person claiming to be the official's "superior" called her on Friday, 3 October, insisting that payment could only be processed through an approved vendor on the ePerolehan list.
Su was then asked to liaise with a so-called "souvenir vendor" who requested her to fork out RM15,000 in order to proceed with the deal.
That was when Su drew the line
"Logically, if anyone asks you to pay money first when they should be paying you instead, it's a clear red flag right?" she said, adding that she immediately ended all communications after the suspicious demand.
Unfortunately, by then, her team had already spent time and money preparing for the order — including 200 gold gift boxes, stickers, cards, and freshly baked cookies
Su has since decided to repurpose the products for a Deepavali special available for other customers to buy.
In her post, she also encouraged others to stay vigilant and double-check any requests that may involve upfront costs or payment delays.
Several other small business owners have since commented, sharing that they too had encountered similar scams using the same modus operandi
Many said the scammers also posed as government officials, using supposed bureaucratic procedures to place large orders and cheat other businesses and caterers out of thousands of ringgit.
In an update, Su said she has lodged a police report over the incident and expressed gratitude to her customers for their support in purchasing the gift boxes.
