Nigeria Customs Service doesn’t run auctions via WhatsApp – follow its official channels instead

IN SHORT: Several posts on Facebook ask Nigerians to send texts via WhatsApp to participate in an electronic auction of vehicles and other items. However, the auction can only be accessed through the Nigeria Customs Service’s official portal.

Several Facebook posts claim that the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is auctioning vehicles, rice and vegetable oil online.

Part of the 15 November 2024 post reads: “Those Vehicles Are Impounded Due To Smuggling And Improper Registration … We Deliver To 36 State In Nigeria.”

The post lists available vehicles, brands of rice and oil, and their prices.

Interested users are asked to “Call Or WhatsApp Officer In Charge”.

The NCS is responsible for collecting and accounting for taxes. It also combats the smuggling of goods into and out of the country.

The agency auctions abandoned cars and goods on its e-auction platform. Details and guidelines for the process are available on the NCS website.

Other posts claiming the NCS auction portal has opened can be found here, here, here and here. Perhaps in a bid to appear legit, most of the posts feature videos of NCS officials and offices.

But can these posts be trusted? We checked.

Follow official NCS channels

An auction is a public sale where items are sold to the highest bidder. According to the NCS, auctions are only done on the agency’s website through this link.

But the Facebook posts ask interested buyers to communicate via WhatsApp. This is a tactic often used by scammers to attempt to steal people’s personal or banking information.

We also found nothing about the alleged auction on the agency’s official Facebook page.