7 Warnings for Those Who Will Rent a Villa during the Eid-al-Adha Holiday

While citizens are preparing for the 9-day holiday, which was announced with a cabinet meeting, cyber crooks have started to target those who want to rent a villa as a more suitable alternative for vacation. Alev Akkoyunlu, Operations Director of Laykon Bilişim, says that one should be cautious against fraudulent e-mails, phone calls, fake websites, ads on social media and fake website ads in search engines.

They use villa photos from real sites and offer them for half the price.

Laykon IT Operations Director Alev Akkoyunlu, who warns those who want to make the most of the Eid al-Adha holiday, to be aware of the potential for fraud in this unusual market, said: ' or 'rent' with a mix of keywords and what appears to be an official site. The details of legitimate villas are often stolen from other sites. At first, the scammers' websites looked amateurish and didn't take much effort. They now extensively copy their official website and use a similar different website name. Scammers are targeting popular resorts in the Aegean and Mediterranean, where prices could rise if demand exceeds supply. In order not to arouse suspicion, prices are kept within reasonable ranges and unbelievable prices are not displayed. While a villa costs 30.000 TL on another site, fraudsters are offering the same villa for 15.000 TL.” makes a statement.

9 warnings for those who will rent a villa during the 7-day Eid al-Adha holiday

Alev Akkoyunlu, who says that those who plan to rent a villa during the holiday, should be cautious, gives 7 warnings.

1. Avoid paying by bank transfer. Use your credit or debit card. Always transact with a virtual card.

2. When the holidays are only a few days away, you get excited about making a reservation and focus on making a quick stay. Be sure to check the prices of other similar villas in the area where you plan to stay. If the villa you want to rent is much lower than other villas or you need to book right away, inquire why. Trust your instincts. Offers that seem too good to be true are often not.

3. Fake websites opened for this purpose may use photos of luxury villas and apartments that do not actually exist. These are often offered at discounted prices and require a never-refundable deposit. If possible, book directly through a reputable travel company or agency that is a member of TÜRSAB. Always use known websites and apps.

4. Once you know the owner and details of the property, do a Google search to do some research. You can verify the address on google maps and use the street view feature. Check that the photos in the ads match the images in the street view.

5. When you make a reservation for the villa, a reservation contract should be sent to you for you to sign. This outlines the terms and conditions of the vacation and should include details such as the resort address.

6. The property's availability calendar needs to be updated after you rent it out. If it is not updated, it will most likely be rented to different people many times on the same dates.

7. Perform a reverse image search for photos of the property. Right click on the image and select 'Search for images in Google'. If you see the same photo used for several different properties, it's probably a scam.