In Portugal, cases of online fraud continue to increase. An analysis of Portal da Queixa reveals that, in the first quarter of the year, Portuguese consumers registered 1313 complaints on the platform regarding scams, an increase of around 20%, compared to the same period in 2023, which registered 1095 complaints. As of April 21st, the issue has already received 1,486 complaints.
According to data analyzed by Portal da Queixa, the majority of complaints reported are related to cases of purchases in online stores, where consumers complain about having purchased a product that they did not receive, leaving no response (from the brand/seller) and without refunding the money.
The non-execution of refund requests – after non-receipt of the product – is therefore the main reason for reported complaints, generating 57.8% of complaints in situations of fraud. Another reason given by consumers is related to problems in contact/response from the brand. These are cases that report difficulties in customer service and a lack of feedback from the seller.
The analysis also assessed the most complained about categories, where the alleged situation of fraud occurred during online purchasing. The largest volume (collecting 42.5% of complaints) was registered in the Shopping, Fashion and Jewelry category. This is followed by the area of Beauty, Aesthetics and Well-being, which accounted for 13.6% of cases.
9.4% of complaints report fraudulent schemes in the Hotels, Travel and Tourism category and 9% of cases point the finger at Furniture, Decoration and Appliances stores. The origin of 7.4% of complaints are Internet, Websites and Business stores.
The data indicates that, this year, 60.7% of complaints about scams in e-commerce were registered by women. The age groups in which there was a greater participation of complaints are consumers over 45 years old, with emphasis on ages between 45 and 54 years old.
More than 25 thousand complaints in 2023 and more than 5 million losses
It is recalled that, in 2023, the Portal da Queixa received close to 25 thousand complaints related to online scams, an increase of 37%, compared to the same period in 2022. The majority of complaints reported alleged online schemes, where consumers were without the product, without response and without the money. The estimated value of losses resulting from fraud reported last year exceeded five million euros.
