There are no Black Friday 'gifts' from South African retailer Pick n Pay, ignore dodgy link circulating on social media
IN SHORT: With many major retailers promoting "Black Friday" deals, scammers are also hard at work, using retailers' names to try to trick shoppers. This message claiming that supermarket chain Pick n Pay is giving away "Black Friday gifts" is a scam.
In 2024, the day after the US Thanksgiving holiday, widely known as "Black Friday" and as the start of the Christmas shopping season, falls on 29 November.
Shops and businesses across the world run promotions to coincide with Black Friday, and one of those is South African retailer Pick n Pay, which sells groceries, home appliances and clothes. It started building up to Black Friday in mid-November.
In this context, a message sent to Africa Check's WhatsApp line claims there's a "PnP - Black Friday Sale" and encourages users to "click here to get your gifts".
The message features a link where users can supposedly apply for these "Limited Time Offers".
Screenshots of the same message circulating on WhatsApp have been posted on Facebook.
A very similar link is also circulating in public Facebook groups with thousands of members. Those who've posted it claim they've won a prize in the Pick n Pay competition: "Wow did I really just win a prize TRY YOUR LUCK."
But are these "gifts" part of Pick n Pay Black Friday sales? We checked.
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No such promotion
The lack of details in this message is the first sign that it can't be trusted. When a retailer as big as Pick n Pay runs a promotion, it usually provides details such as when the promotion ends, terms and conditions, and what prizes can be won. The viral message just says "gifts" and "limited time offer".
Another red flag is the dodgy-looking link. When we clicked on it, our antivirus software flagged it as suspicious and risky. We decided to open it anyway, but the page was unavailable. Clicking on such links could lead to you giving out personal information or unknowingly downloading viruses.
Pick n Pay has active social media accounts, including on Facebook and X. We scoured its accounts for the promotion in question and came up empty.
On 19 November, the retailer labelled the claim a scam: "This is not a valid Pick n Pay website and is not affiliated with Pick n Pay in any way. We only run competitions on our own social media pages."
Pick n Pay also posted the circulating message on its website, urging customers "not to click on any links, capture personal information or share such messages".
Remember, if a promotion looks too good to be true, it probably is. Scammers rely on distraction and will try to use that to trick you into giving out your personal or banking information. Always pause before clicking on any link.
To protect yourself, read our guide to Facebook scams and how to spot them.
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