Dorset woman falls victim to 'brushing' scam
A free mug that came in the post has prompted a woman from Weymouth to make sure her details are secure online.
Tracey Rangdale believes she was victim of a 'brushing' scam, and is warning others to be wary of similar unsolicited packages.
A 'brushing scam' involves an individual or company using your information to create an online shopping account to purchase their own items.
That allows them to proove the item has been delivered, which means they can leave a 'verified review' of their own product.
Tracey said:
"When I opened it I thought... 'That's a mug... that's a bit random.'
"Then you're thinking 'why would someone send that to me, maybe it was my son messing around on the internet' but I said he would order something far cooler than that.
"Then I thought someone must have sent it to be by mistake and I looked on the packaging and and interestingly the packaging has no seller or sender details, it has no note attached to it to say anything about her it's from or who ordered it"
"It also didn't have an invoice on it. Tracey says a small QR scanner code was stuck to the box too but when scanner it just said "normal", as if it was there to fill a gap."
She wants other people to be aware of the scams. She says while it may not seem malicious, it could be a sign that your account details have been breached.
Tracey added: "Normally, you receive something nice in the post or even something a bit dull but it's an extra and you wouldn't question it.
"I just want everyone to know that this is a sign that perhaps your details are not secure as they should be and you need to be taking some action to protect yourself."
Here's a statement from Dorset Council who said they haven't had any complaints from people in the county about brushing:
"Where money is demanded or personal details asked for, there is greater concern. There are so many scams about so many things, with a constant flow of new fraudulent initiatives. The best approach is for us all to be on guard with reasonable suspicion all the time about any unsolicited approach or delivery. "
You can check if your details have been involved in any data breaches here: