Eskom warns of procurement scam

Electricity parastatal Eskom on Saturday warned businesses of a new procurement scam using Eskom's name. “Eskom's forensic department has been inundated with volumes of complaints relating to fraudulent Eskom orders (procurement scam),” it said in a statement. The scammers targeted companies across the country using the Eskom name to defraud unsuspecting companies. The common approach or method used was that the victim's company would receive a bogus request for quote (RFQ) either by email or by fax with the Eskom logo. The contact person would supposedly be a “buyer” who was unknown to Eskom and with incorrect Eskom contact details. Scenarios normally used by the scammers included bogus RFQ for “core business” items to be supplied by the company approached. They would require items in bulk (or high volume of stock) with a total price not less than R1 million.

The RFQ would reflect as if it was coming from Eskom's finance director or CEO. They would fax forged order forms to the victim and ask them to deliver goods to a specified address, Eskom said. Regarding “rare equipment”, if the bogus RFQ was sent to a company that did not deal with equipment they would usually create a bogus website reflecting a company (bogus OEM) that would be able to provide the specific unique item required. The referred bogus company was part of the same syndicate, although the numbers reflected would differ from those of the “buyer” so that it would be as if one was dealing with different people/entities. After submitting the RFQ back to Eskom, a fraudulent order number was issued with delivery date within a short period of time. Upon engaging this bogus company, they would request an upfront deposit of approximately 50 percent of the total value.

The deposit would have to be paid into the bank account belonging to a certain individual, not a business account. In some instances the scammers would try to put pressure to get the whole amount of an order before delivery would be made. The bogus company would offer to deliver the goods to Eskom on behalf of the victim company, and request to meet the representative of the victim company at the delivery address. No delivery would be made to Eskom and they would sometimes provide a fake delivery note to the victim company as if the goods were delivered to Eskom and demand the outstanding balance.

This would serve as delaying tactics so that they would be able to clear their bank account before the victim registers a criminal case for the bank account to be frozen. If the victim demanded more information indicative of being suspicious, they would avoid taking calls from the victim or they would discontinue using their contact numbers and close the website to open another one. The delivery address reflected on purchase orders was either an address that did not belong to Eskom or a correct Eskom address. Where delivery was made to correct Eskom premises, receipt of goods would be done outside the security check point by scammers purporting to be Eskom employees. To verify the authenticity of Eskom orders, suppliers were advised to contact Mr Manase Mathabathe on 011-800-2202 or Ms Dolly Tsitsi on 011-800-6041.

It should be noted that Eskom did not use email addresses that end with: @eskomholdingssupplychain.co.za , @eskomfinance.co.za, @eskomprocurement.co.za, @eskomgroup.co.za , @eskomsa.co.za, @eskomenterprise.co.za, @eskomdistribution.co.za, @eskomrotek.co.za. “Please note that these domain addresses change frequently. Because it is also possible that the fraudsters can spoof a correct Eskom e-mail address, suppliers must be vigilant and, where necessary, verify the RFQ using Eskom numbers other than any contact details that appear on the RFQ/order.” If a supplier had to make a deposit into a bank account of a provider with no previous business relations, it was advisable for the supplier to verify ownership with the bank before making the deposit. Victims should immediately register a criminal case of fraud with the South African Police Service as soon as they became aware that they had been scammed and alert the bank that was used to deposit the funds, Eskom said.