China police issue National Day anti-fraud tips; Xinhua warns of hotel booking scams
Version 2: Xinhua has since published a separate National Day travel warning that also covers “low-price hotel booking” scams, a category the earlier reports on the police advisory did not include.
In short
China's public security organs released anti-fraud safety tips for the National Day holiday, warning about scams that rise with heavier travel and shopping, including fake airline refund calls, fake e-commerce and logistics refunds, and online game or concert ticket offers aimed at minors. Police advised verifying flight and refund claims through official airline or platform channels and not transferring money to unknown accounts. China News Service also reported that a “National Anti-Fraud AI” assistant is available for users to check suspected scams; Xinhua later warned travellers of both “flight refund and rebooking” and “low-price hotel booking” scams.
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China's public security organs released anti-fraud safety tips on 3 October, warning of telecom and online fraud that rises during the National Day holiday as travel, entertainment and shopping activity increase, according to China News Service and IT Home. The notice, attributed to the Ministry of Public Security's Criminal Investigation Bureau, sets out three scam types it describes as frequent during the break. Two days later, Xinhua published a headline report titled “National Day travel: beware of 'flight refund and rebooking' and 'low-price hotel booking' scams”, adding discounted hotel bookings to the holiday warnings — a category the other two accounts did not mention. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
In the flight category, the police said fraudsters impersonate airline customer service by phone or text, quoting a victim's accurate name, ID number, flight number and boarding time to gain trust. They then claim the flight was delayed or cancelled for mechanical or weather reasons, offer compensation and push the victim to click unknown links, log into fake websites or download apps with screen-sharing and remote-control functions, in order to obtain bank card numbers, passwords and verification codes, or to persuade the victim to transfer money for reasons such as paying a deposit. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
In shopping, scammers impersonate e-commerce and logistics platform staff by mass text or phone call, citing lost, delayed or damaged parcels or product quality problems, and offer compensation. Victims are led to so-called return links or fake shopping sites to hand over ID numbers, bank card numbers, passwords and verification codes, or are induced to transfer money for a deposit. [ 1 , 2 ]
The third category targets young people. With more time spent on short-video, social and gaming platforms during the holiday, the police said fraudsters post fake offers such as “high-price purchase of game accounts”, “free skins” or “lifting anti-addiction limits”, or sell purported celebrity meet-and-greet or concert tickets, drawing minors in as friends before pushing links, QR codes, imitation platforms or fraudulent apps. Parents were urged to supervise minors' device use and set payment limits and permissions. [ 1 , 2 ]
The police advised verifying any delay or cancellation through airline customer service lines and official websites, staying on official platforms, and not transferring money to unknown accounts, clicking unknown links, logging into fake websites, downloading fraudulent apps or enabling screen sharing. On refunds, they said legitimate online merchants require no advance payment and return money through the original payment channel, without card numbers, passwords or verification codes. [ 1 , 2 ]
China News Service also reported that users who are unsure whether they face a scam can ask a “National Anti-Fraud AI”, described as an anti-fraud assistant guided by the Ministry of Public Security's Criminal Investigation Bureau and independently developed by the Shanghai Public Security Bureau. It answers questions by phone, identifies scam types, breaks down methods, offers risk analysis and prevention advice, and pushes case examples and awareness videos, the outlet said, adding that the app is downloadable from major app stores and also available as WeChat and Alipay mini-programs. IT Home's report on the same tips did not mention the tool. [ 1 ]
Why it matters
The notice is a routine public-security advisory timed to a long holiday, when travel and online shopping volumes rise and consumer losses to impersonation scams tend to follow. It tells households, especially parents of minors on gaming and social platforms, what verification steps the police consider necessary before any refund or compensation is accepted, and Xinhua's later warning extends the same caution to discounted hotel bookings.
Key facts
- China's public security organs issued anti-fraud safety tips for the National Day holiday, citing increased travel, entertainment and shopping activity. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The tips cover three scam types: impersonating airline customer service over flight delays and refunds or rebooking, impersonating e-commerce and logistics customer service over refunds, and fraudulent game account or concert ticket offers targeting young people. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Police said scammers often quote a victim's accurate name, ID number, flight number and boarding time to win trust before asking for bank card numbers, passwords or verification codes. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Police advised checking flight delays or cancellations through airline customer service lines and official websites, and not transferring money to unknown accounts or enabling screen sharing. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Police said legitimate online refunds require no advance payment and are returned through the original payment channel, without card numbers, passwords or verification codes. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Parents were told to supervise minors' device use and set payment limits, because game-related fake offers such as “high-price purchase of game accounts”, “free skins” and “lifting anti-addiction limits” target young users. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Xinhua published a report on 5 October titled “National Day travel: beware of 'flight refund and rebooking' and 'low-price hotel booking' scams”. [ 3 ]
- China News Service reported that a “National Anti-Fraud AI” assistant, guided by the Ministry of Public Security's Criminal Investigation Bureau and developed by the Shanghai Public Security Bureau, answers fraud questions and is available as an app and via WeChat and Alipay mini-programs. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Public security organs issued anti-fraud safety tips for the National Day holiday. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The tips warn about impersonation of airline customer service in flight delay and refund or rebooking scams. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The tips warn about impersonation of e-commerce and logistics customer service in refund scams. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Police advised verifying claims through official airline or platform channels and not transferring money to unknown accounts. [ 1 , 2 ]
Still unclear
- Whether the “National Anti-Fraud AI” assistant is newly launched or was being promoted again for the holiday. Only China News Service mentions the tool; IT Home's account of the same announcement omits it, so no second source supports the detail.
- How many fraud cases or what losses have been reported during the holiday. None of the documents gives case numbers or figures.
- What the “low-price hotel booking” scam involves and what advice police gave travellers about it. Only Xinhua's headline states this category; no article text or detail is available from that document, and the other outlets do not mention hotel bookings.