Tis the season for savings… and scams, unfortunately.
Some people are taking advantage of people’s desire to add holiday cheer to their homes by pulling elaborate but effective scams. Here’s one to look out for, especially if you tend to scroll TikTok.
How did Boomira scam this shopper out of $40?
In a series of viral videos with more than a million views collectively, TikTok April Powers (@aprilpowers50) explains how she got got online.
“It is embarrassing that I fell for this, but I want to keep anybody else from having to go through that,” Powers says in one video.
Powers explains that she was scrolling on TikTok when she saw an ad for a seven-foot-tall, pre-lit Christmas tree for $40.
“I shoulda known, just from that, that it was a scam,” Powers says, referring to the value of the tree.
Unfamiliar with TikTok shop, Powers thought the item may have been more heavily discounted because of the promos TikTok shop runs to get new customers. The site she bought it through was Boomira.
“Anything that starts with boom, mhh mhh, don’t do it,” Powers says.
Instead of sending you a tree in the mail, the company gives customers a fake tracking number, she alleges, “and then they take off with your money after they tell you that it’s going to take at least 20 days for it to get here.”
“This place is gonna close up shop and take everybody’s money. Do not order a tree from these people,” Powers says.
And she’s exactly right; this is common grift scammer use where they make what they’re selling seem legit and then disappear off of the internet after getting people’s money and card information.
In other instances, places like Boomira will fulfill the order but with a much cheaper replica, a clearly used item, or send another item entirely.
How to protect yourself from online shopping scams
Keeper, a digital security site and product, suggested doing your due diligence on tracking numbers. It should look like the examples on the shipper’s website and information should pop up when you enter it in the shipper’s tracking portal. If either of these things are off it may be fake.
Other things to look out for are tracking numbers that show the product was delivered when you still haven’t gotten it, phishing messages via text or email pretending to be the delivery service, and being asked to pay extra fees after the fact.
If you suspect you fell for a scam (it happens all the time, nothing to be ashamed of), reach out to your bank immediately and report it.
@aprilpowers50 #christmas #scam #7foottreefor40bucks #boom #buyerbeware ♬ original sound – aprilpowers50
Spreading awareness helped
In a follow-up video, Powers says that her information had been shared around TikTok so much that when she called her bank to dispute the charge, the worker herself was already familiar with the situation because she had seen Powers’ video.
“I thought maybe I could save 10 or 15 people from making the same mistake I did. Now y’all are responsible for literally thousands of women and men prevented from getting scammed by this same company,” Powers says.
She thanks the larger influencers who picked up on her video and urges them to keep spreading awareness about online scams. Powers explains that she’s not used to shopping online, aside from on Amazon.
Through this situation, she’s learned that scam sites like Boomira push seasonal items and entice buyers to buy at a low price. Because they advertise that shipping can take a few weeks, by the time the item is supposed to arrive they’re banking on people forgetting they’d ever placed an order.
For those who do remember, they have no course of action with the company since they’ll often have disappeared off of the internet and other platforms like TikTok Shop by then.
Want a 7ft Christmas tree? Here’s where to get it
While the $40 deal seemed really great, there are other legitimate companies selling pre-lit trees in that ballpark.
- Target has a lit 7.5 foot tree for $50, an unlit one for $42.50 and a shorter, 6.5-footer for $27.50
- Michael’s has a prelit 7 foot tree for $70
- Wayfair is selling one for $62
- Lowe’s has a snow-covered tree for $69
Commenters react
“Boomira is a SCAM. always always check places out before you order,” a top comment read.
“I was thinking about to getting one but felt like it was too good to be true for 39.99. Thanks for the heads up!” a person said.
“I have worked at a Bank for 18 yrs and I got scammed last yr. on black Friday I learned, if you click on link and it doesn’t bring you to TikTok shop- DON’T BUY IT! It happens,” another warned
The Daily Dot reached out to Powers for comment via TikTok direct message and comment and to Boomira via email.
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