‘Secret Shopper’ Scammers Hit High Desert

Check your inbox, and beware, as a scam targeting people looking to become a “secret shopper” has been hitting Central Oregon.

At least three people have been sent money across Deschutes County, asking them to shop at Walmart and then send money to the Philippines.

Karee Edwards of Sisters is no stranger to being a real secret shopper — she’s done it more than a dozen times over the last 20 years.

Edwards said Tuesday the instructions e-mailed to her matched what she had done before.

“What they sent me to do and respond back to them was legitimate,” said Edwards. “What wasn’t legitimate is to send $780 to this address in the Philippines when you’ve completed paying yourself.”

Skeptical, she had the money order sent to her home. When it arrived she took it to the Sisters post pffice, where she learned it was a fake.

“He held it up and saw that there was no watermark,” Edwards said. “He said, ‘No, this isn’t our check — it looks very close.'”

She then took it to the Bank of the Cascades, where the manager told her that just earlier that morning, they had received a notice warning them to look out for this type of scam.

The bank also told her that there had been two other reports of people in the area being sent fake money orders.

Walmart is no stranger to this type of scam. In fact, they have a page dedicated to protect consumers from it on their corporate Website.

They offer these tips to keep you safe:

–Don’t open or respond to unsolicited emails asking you to be a secret shopper

–Never deposit a check you receive in the mail from a mystery shopping company — you will never be paid in advance

–Remember, if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

“Secret shopping — whenever you get those, you really have to check them out,” said Edwards, “They can be legitimate, but look for anywhere from $12 to $20 an hour — but not $100 an hour.”

If you think you have fallen victim to this latest scam, contact your local police agency.