A fraudulent REKK scheme involving illegal refunds from major retailers has been uncovered.
Amazon's consumer protection and enforcement team has filed a lawsuit against a large-scale clandestine refund fraud scheme that resulted in the theft of millions of dollars ' worth of goods from Amazon's online platforms. The lawsuit is directed against 20 members of an international fraud organization called REKK, as well as 7 former Amazon employees acting as insiders.
The ORC group (Organized Retail Crime, ORC) provided services for the illegal return of goods for a certain fee through online forums and social networks. Customers seeking free iPads or MacBooks purchased items through Amazon, then paid REKK a percentage of the item's value (for example, 30%) to receive an illegal refund.
To do this, REKK manipulated customer service representatives by using social engineering, unauthorized access to Amazon systems, and bribing insiders to secure a refund without actually returning the product. After a successful refund, customers gave their share to REKK.
Confirmation of a refund
In November 2019, REKK claimed to have made fraudulent refunds on more than 100,000 orders from various retailers (including Samsung, ASOS, Nike), serving more than 30,000 customers worldwide, not limited to Amazon.
REKK members actively target Amazon's markets in the US, Canada, and Europe, using various Telegram accounts, as well as the Nulled, Reddit, and Discord platforms to promote their services and communicate with customers.
Amazon highlighted the severity of the problem, noting that in November alone, Amazon helped law enforcement agencies on three continents take action against refund groups, leading to arrests and disruption of organizations responsible for millions of dollars in fraud.
Amazon says it spent more than $1.2 billion last year alone. to hire investigators to investigate activities and fight theft, fraud and abuse, involving more than 15,000 employees. After detecting fraudulent activity, the company takes a number of measures, including informing customers, closing accounts, and blocking fraudsters from creating new accounts.
Amazon's consumer protection and enforcement team has filed a lawsuit against a large-scale clandestine refund fraud scheme that resulted in the theft of millions of dollars ' worth of goods from Amazon's online platforms. The lawsuit is directed against 20 members of an international fraud organization called REKK, as well as 7 former Amazon employees acting as insiders.
The ORC group (Organized Retail Crime, ORC) provided services for the illegal return of goods for a certain fee through online forums and social networks. Customers seeking free iPads or MacBooks purchased items through Amazon, then paid REKK a percentage of the item's value (for example, 30%) to receive an illegal refund.
To do this, REKK manipulated customer service representatives by using social engineering, unauthorized access to Amazon systems, and bribing insiders to secure a refund without actually returning the product. After a successful refund, customers gave their share to REKK.
Confirmation of a refund
In November 2019, REKK claimed to have made fraudulent refunds on more than 100,000 orders from various retailers (including Samsung, ASOS, Nike), serving more than 30,000 customers worldwide, not limited to Amazon.
REKK members actively target Amazon's markets in the US, Canada, and Europe, using various Telegram accounts, as well as the Nulled, Reddit, and Discord platforms to promote their services and communicate with customers.
Amazon highlighted the severity of the problem, noting that in November alone, Amazon helped law enforcement agencies on three continents take action against refund groups, leading to arrests and disruption of organizations responsible for millions of dollars in fraud.
Amazon says it spent more than $1.2 billion last year alone. to hire investigators to investigate activities and fight theft, fraud and abuse, involving more than 15,000 employees. After detecting fraudulent activity, the company takes a number of measures, including informing customers, closing accounts, and blocking fraudsters from creating new accounts.
