Too good to be true? Viral Threads post warns of rental scam

SHAH ALAM - A woman shared a terrifying experience of how she nearly became a victim of a rental house scam.

Her post on social media platform Threads, which has since gone viral, prompted others to come forward with similar experiences, shedding light on what appears to be a growing scam trend involving fake rental listings.

Last week, @schael whose name is Scha Salleh, 27, who was searching for a new home shared how she grew suspicious upon arriving at a rental property for viewing after spotting several red flags.

"When I arrived, the air conditioner was already switched on, the house was clean and tidy and there were even bedsheets and towels prepared. There was also WiFi available.

"The surprising part was that the towels were folded exactly like those in an Airbnb. At that moment, I felt something was off," she said.

She then started questioning the supposed homeowner, a woman, about the unit she had found on online marketplace Mudah.my.

When she requested a business card from the woman, the latter allegedly responded, "Oh, I forgot my wallet. I will send you a picture (of the business card) later."

Further suspicion arose when the property was listed for RM1,800 which was significantly lower than similar units priced around RM2,500.

Scha said the woman pressured her to make an immediate deposit, claiming that the unit was in high demand and also offered an additional 15 days rent-free if she secured the booking on the spot.

"If you are that desperate for money and want to scam people, at least hide the towels. I have never met a homeowner renting out their house with free towels and WiFi.

"At that moment, I was so angry I felt like knocking her head," Scha wrote.

She shared that thise was her second encounter with a similar scam tactic.

The first incident, she said happened in Cheras whilte the other incident happened in Jalan Klang Lama.

She also shared phone numbers associated with the scammers in her post: Eugene (+60107128295) and Rina (+601168433031).

Scha also posted a video of the rental property. She also attempted to capture a photo of the alleged scammer, but the latter kept on avoiding the camera.

Her story on Threads has garnered over 1.7 million views, with many users sharing similar experiences.

A user, @reshaaaaaaaa_, thanked Scha for raising awareness, revealing that her post prevented her from falling for a similar scam.

"I had scheduled a house viewing in Nova Saujana but grew suspicious when my agent suddenly transferred me to another contact with no WhatsApp profile picture, registered under a transportation business.

"A quick search confirmed the agent's face was linked to multiple scam reports," she said.

Another user, @77__nq_ also recounted in the comment setion, an identical encounter right after the Covid-19 pandemic, where a masked scammer rushed her to transfer a deposit for an Airbnb-style unit listed at an unusually low price.

Although she had physically viewed the property, she later realised the rental was not legitimate. She also revealed that she had found the listing on Mudah.my.

Similarly, @aznizahs claimed that she had fallen victim to such a scam in June, last year, in Sungai Besi, where the fraudsters allegedly scammed around ten people in a single day, some of whom had already transferred payments.

She also encountered the scam on Mudah.my.

Despite the alarming revelations, Scha said she did not lodge a police report.

"I only warned the scammer that I would report them to the police, but I never actually did. Since I was not scammed and I was rushing to view other units, I did not have the time to lodge a report," she told Sinar Daily when contacted.

The case has since caught the attention of authorities.

Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Datuk Seri Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf said this type of scam falls under e-commerce fraud, which accounted for 3,506 reported cases in Malaysia in 2023.

"If possible, potential tenants should meet the landlord in person before finalising any transaction," he said, emphasising the importance of physical verification.

Ramli said scammers often send different individuals to meet victims in person to evade accountability.

"The first scammer would claim that they could not make it and send someone else to replace them," he said, adding that this was a common tactic used to deceive victims.

He advised the public to always verify the identities of property owners and be skeptical of offers that seemed too good to be true.

As rental scams become increasingly sophisticated, Scha’s viral post served as a crucial reminder for renters to stay vigilant and verify listings before making any payments.

With more victims coming forward, authorities urged individuals to report such cases to prevent others from falling prey to these scams.