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Shopping points add up nationwide to Y1.4 tril a year, and they can be stolen

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Who doesn’t go shopping nowadays with a wallet full of “point cards?” A point here and a point there add up, nationwide, to the equivalent of some 1.4 trillion yen a year, according to the Yano Research Institute. Maybe it was only a matter of time before thieves took notice. They have, says Josei Seven (Nov 23). “Point theft” is a looming danger.

It’s largely under the radar because among the few victims who even notice, fewer still bother to report their loss. It seems a lot of trouble over nothing. Points are not money – or are they?

Josei Seven’s investigation began with the misadventure of one of its desk editors, a man identified as “W.” He’s a point collector. His wife makes fun of him – she says it’s not something a man should bother with – but he knows what he likes, and he likes points, the more the better. Every morning on the way to work, he stops in at the local Dutour for coffee. As he pays, he presents his point card, and over time found himself the proud owner of 24,000 yen worth of points.

One day, they vanished. Where to? He had no idea. A few clicks of his smartphone led him to his “point history,” where he found, to his astonishment, that two weeks earlier he had purchased, at an online auction site, a 24,600-yen aroma oil lamp set. Except that he had done no such thing. Someone else, evidently, had – with his points.

A Josei Seven news editor, hearing the story, got an idea. “Find the points,” he said.

“What?” said W.

 “Find out what happened to the points, and write it up. The same thing must have happened to some of our readers, or will in future. They must be warned. Find the points and write the story.”

 The history of points as we know them today, the magazine says, goes back to a 2003 brainwave by the bookstore and video rental chain Tsutaya. Its “T-points” caught on, and spread. Now almost every purveyor of everything has some kind of point system, offering cash, prizes, discounts and so on. According to Nomura Research, 93.9% of shoppers have at least one point card.

W is not a reporter, but an order is an order, and besides, he had his own reason for wanting the points found. Where to begin? With a lawyer. Who suggested the police. The police were nonplussed. What division did this fall under? Theft? Cybercrime?

Round one of his inquiry ended with advice that he’d better contact the Yahoo! Auctions, where the aroma oil lamp transaction occurred. Contacting Yahoo! Auctions (Yahoo-oku! in Japanese) is easier said than done, W discovered. He clicked “contact,” hoping for a phone number but finding only email addresses. His mail went unanswered. He tried again. Ditto.

It took a month, but he did finally get through. The company was sympathetic and helpful: “It appears that a third party gained unlawful access to our site. Please accept as a gift from us” the lost points.

 Josei Seven cites other episodes. In September three Chinese men were arrested on suspicion of  hacking and stealing points from Bic Camera and Rakuten. In October 2016 a Chinese woman attending vocational school in Japan was charged with the serial theft of some 10 million yen worth of points.

W’s story sounds like a happy ending, but his editor, the magazine reports, was far from pleased. “If you can’t manage your own points,” he grumbled, “how can you be manage your responsibilities at work?” It’s the sort of thing a boss would say. W made no reply, and the matter ended there.

© Japan Today

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

5 Comments
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I always try to use points as soon as possible. The company issuing them could go out of business at any time and they will become worthless. Or they could be stolen, as in the article.

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I usually use points for small purchase, only have 2 cards (Yodobashi and Famima/T-points). Refuse all other cards as the wallet gets too thick.

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I just refuse to become involved as I do not wish to be led to consume more and more of what I don't really want......

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