Online fraudsters are exploiting the popularity of Chandpur hilsa to deceive customers through fake Facebook pages, demanding repeated payments while failing to deliver the fish.

In one case, a housewife named Sultana from Malibagh ordered hilsa worth Tk 3,000 from a Facebook page called Nahids World on September 28. After paying Tk 550 in advance for delivery, she was asked to transfer the full price of the fish, allegedly to complete an OTP verification process.

The fraud did not stop there. After claiming that the OTP had failed, the sellers asked her to make another payment, promising to refund the earlier amounts. Despite paying twice, Sultana received no fish. Her calls went unanswered, and she was eventually blocked.

Sultana said the sellers initially told her that the OTP was not working because she had not included the delivery charge. After she paid again, they demanded another Tk 6,000, claiming the previous payments would be refunded.

A similar complaint was reported against another Facebook platform named Chandpur Hilsa Ghat. Its listed contact number was the same as the one used by Nahids World. A Mirpur resident, Iftekhar Ahmed, said he was also deceived after being asked to make advance payments through bKash. The sellers claimed their bKash account had been blocked and demanded another payment, but the promised fish never arrived.

The verified Nahids World page said fraudsters had created numerous fake pages using its name and videos to deceive customers. Muhammad Robiul Hossain, the company's sales and customer executive, said the business generally did not take advance payments and was working with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and cybercrime authorities to tackle the problem.

He said the company had filed cases against around 60 to 70 pages and that approximately 15 people had been arrested in connection with the fraud.

Cybersecurity experts have advised customers to verify a seller's identity, business information and contact address before placing online orders. They also recommend checking the legitimacy of offers and avoiding repeated payments prompted by suspicious OTP or account-related claims.

Cyber expert Sumon Ahmed Sabir said the popularity of cash-on-delivery reflects the lack of sufficient trust in e-commerce among consumers. He urged legitimate online businesses to take a more active role in protecting customer confidence and preventing fraudsters from damaging the industry's reputation.

Last month, police arrested four people in Narail over alleged online fraud involving the sale of Chandpur hilsa. The arrests followed investigations into fake online advertisements for fish and other products.