Report fake purchase order requests to the City

24 May 2022

The City of Cape Town urges suppliers to be aware of fake purchase order and acceptance letter emails that may be sent to them, purporting to be from the City or a City official. Suppliers should always double-check with us to see whether any request is legitimate. Please report suspicious emails to the City for further investigation.

The City’s Forensic Investigations Unit is aware of a recent scam attempt shared with some City vendors. Scammers are sending emails, mostly using the names of City officials, to vendors informing them that their quotation has been successful and then to submit additional documentation to the scammer.

‘The City’s Forensic Investigations Unit is looking at additional methods to bring these scammers to book due to an increase in the frequency of these scams over the past two years. When a scam or a fake Request For Quotation (RFQ) is reported to the City, it is investigated by the Forensic Investigations Unit. The City then reports it to the South African Police Service (SAPS) for further investigation.

‘We ask suppliers to be aware of scammers who are looking to take advantage of business owners who are currently doing work, or would like to do work, with the City. We urge you to be vigilant and when you come across any suspicious email, RFQ, purchase order or appointment letters, please report it to the City’s RFQ help desk urgently.

‘If suppliers or residents are unsure if an email is from the City, they may contact us via the City’s RFQ helpdesk for assistance,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Finance, Councillor Siseko Mbandezi.
 
See this short YouTube video here: https://youtu.be/TfK3sWTSPqs or on the City’s Supplier guidelines page.
 
For assistance
 
The RFQ help desk can be contacted at Eprocurement.rfq@capetown.gov.za

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Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office