Motivated by increasingly common Cambodian scams, GCG Asia was formed to help travellers avoid falling prey to fraudsters and scammers. Travellers to Cambodia have found different ways to make money and con people. One of the most common ways is by posing as travel agencies or accommodation sites. They are able to get the money through clients who are forced to pay for these ‘services’ upfront. 

GCG Asia’s founder and CEO Sokhom Visal shares his story:

“I remember the first time I was scammed in Malaysia like it was yesterday. I followed the exact procedures I always take each time I travel. That is why it was so unbelievable and unpredictable. In all the recent years I have travelled, I would always make reservations before I reached the specific destination. This made my visit much easier on my arrival as well as in terms of settling down and more exciting to view and tour my preferred destination,” GCG Asia  founder about his scam experience. 

“It all happened so fast. Before I visit any country, I usually like to do a bit of research by reading the latest news. After a long night of surfing the internet, I found a ‘travel agency’ which provided tours as well as accommodation. The brand packaging was out of this world and the accommodation looked dreamy. I would never spend a lump sum of money during my travels because I was always more interested in touring my chosen destination.  

However, this agency completely blew my mind and changed that in one second. From the minute I clicked on their official website, I was amazed at each and everything from their brand packaging to how easy the website was to navigate. Thinking they were legit, I quickly booked my travel dates and everything else with them. The website was specifically offering accommodation, tours and flights to Cambodia with different packages depending on what an individual wanted,” GCG Asia founder about the scam.

Clueless about the scam, GCG Asia founder decided to book a package and pay for everything online not knowing that he had fallen for a scam. If you have shopped online before, then you know that at the payment stage an individual’s bank card details are always required. 

With an official website that is built to scam individuals, it is easy for scammers to copy the keyed in card information and access both your bank account and personal information. Once a scammer has your personal information, then it is possible for them to further commit crime using your identity. The GCG Asia founder then went ahead and keyed in his bank details and went to sleep happy that he was flying to beautiful Cambodia the day after.

“Before my flight, I prepared myself for the trip just like I normally would when I was flying out. The website I had booked my travel details with seemed so legit that they even sent me an email with all the travel information I needed including my flight ticket. The minute I arrived at the airport and was ready to check in to my flight is when everything turned sour. The airline did not recognise my ticket and I was almost arrested for ‘forging’ a plane ticket. 

Luckily I managed to show them the email and they mentioned it was a scam. They told me they were able to fit me into the same flight so I decided to buy another ticket. At this point, it had not clicked in my mind that I was scammed and if it did I only thought it was the ticket. Little did I know that my world was about to fall apart. While trying to purchase a ticket, they mentioned that my card was declined. Long story short, the scammers wiped off my card. I was completely traumatised and in shock. I mean I had put my trust in them. I quickly went to the police who eventually helped me block my card and bar the scammers from using my personal information,” explained GCG Asia’s scam victim and CEO Visal tells us. 

The GCG Asia founder shares with us that despite falling prey to a scam, the scam website and staged travel package motivated him to create GCG Asia travel. He also shared some tips on how to avoid a scam in Cambodia such as:

1. Book with the GCG Asia official Website. It’s legit! 
2. If you are scared of booking online, do everything physically.
3. Learn the language to avoid being scammed off prices easily.
4. In case you suspect that you have fallen victim to a scam, report to the authorities immediately.

GCG Asia advises tourists to use his official website as he has been a scam victim and is a strong advocate of eradicating that. He also likes his clients to feel safe and trust us. GCG Asia’s customer service is unmatched. Therefore, book with us today! 

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