Bangkok: The government is urging welfare beneficiaries to remain vigilant against potential fraud schemes. Ms. Ayrin Phanrit, Deputy Government Spokesperson, disclosed that several state welfare beneficiaries have encountered issues where their benefits were unlawfully used at stores outside their provinces.

According to Thai News Agency, the Comptroller General’s Department identified that the fraud originated from merchants in the state welfare registration program. These merchants used the Tung Ngern app to facilitate transactions at Blue Flag stores and for cooking gas discounts. They deceived beneficiaries into purchasing discounted items or exchanging them for products like eggs and vegetable oil, subsequently capturing photos of the beneficiaries’ national ID cards and six-digit PIN codes.

This information was then unlawfully distributed to other stores, leading to deductions from the beneficiaries’ welfare credit limits in subsequent months. This prevented them from accessing their benefits. Upon contacting the State Welfare Card Call Center, beneficiaries discovered unauthorized use of their benefits in distant provinces. The government advises recipients to safeguard their national ID cards and PIN codes and avoid sharing them with unreliable vendors.

In cases where benefits are misused, beneficiaries are advised to change their PIN codes immediately at Krungthai Bank ATMs. For those unable to recall their PIN codes, identity verification and new code setup can be done at a Krungthai Bank branch.

Complaints against fraudulent Blue Flag stores can be lodged with the Department of Internal Trade at hotline 1569. Complaints regarding cooking gas stores can be directed to the Department of Energy Business at 0 2794 4307 and 0 2794 4111. Beneficiaries should provide the store’s name and address when filing a complaint. For further assistance, the Comptroller General’s Department Call Center is available at 0 2270 6400 during business hours.