Bali: Why this photo of people chatting at a fast food restaurant has raised fears about a new tourist scam

Travelers are being warned about a new breed of scam targeting tourists in Bali after a woman claimed she foiled an attempt to rob a father and son at a Kuta Burger King.

The Australian woman, who was visiting Bali, explained on social media that she and her husband were sitting at a table in the restaurant this week when three ‘dodgy’ looking people walked past them.

“I saw them approach a father and son and I walked over to listen to the conversation,” the woman said.

She claimed the trio asked people where they were from and then steered the conversation toward international currencies and exchange rates before asking what the money from their home country looks like.

The woman said she felt something about the interaction didn’t look real so she took out her phone and snapped a photo of them, after which the trio “ran off pretty quickly.”

Some commenters on the woman’s post said they were aware of a scam in Bali in which would-be thieves pretend to be interested in foreign exchange to show tourists how much money they are carrying.

“This is the couple who tried it with us. The third guy is the driver, he’s usually around,” someone said.

“When they see you have enough loot in your wallet, they swipe it and take it off, parting ways.

“It’s then passed on to the nearby driver so that if they get caught, they don’t have the evidence with them.”

Another commenter agreed, saying ‘It’s been going on for a while, they grab and run to a waiting car’.

The woman spotted the trio at popular tourist hangout Burger King in Kuta (pictured)

According to Southern Cross Travel Insurance, “pickpockets are not always easy to spot and often work in teams.”

Some common scams they warn against are the snatching of handbags on mopeds, which can be avoided by carrying handbags on the shoulder, away from the road, and walking on the sidewalk against the direction of travel.

Another is the sandwich or bottleneck technique where targets are stopped by crowds or members of the team walking in front of them, allowing thieves to lift their belongings behind them.

The insurer says this can be avoided by keeping money and cards in less obvious places, such as a money belt, and by carrying a decoy wallet or handbag, especially in busy environments such as airports or train stations.

Another tactic is using an actor who distracts the target or asks him to help with, say, taking a picture while another member of the team searches his bag.

The best way to avoid this is to keep your belongings with you before helping a stranger or offering a polite refusal.

Street thieves are also often known to simply grab a bag or cut it with a knife to get to the contents and then just run off. The best prevention against this is not to show cash and keep valuables that you do not need in your accommodation.

Aussies have been warned about several scams while in Bali (photo, stock image)

Australians going to Bali have recently been warned to check that they are not being scammed when applying for visas.

Countless holidaymakers have already been duped by visa agents and brokers who issue overpriced or even bogus visas for Australians to travel to the holiday island.

Some visa services go so far as to impersonate the Indonesian government’s website to mislead unsuspecting travelers.

Some travelers have shared online that they were charged higher fees because they unknowingly used a private agency that charged a commission to purchase the e-Visa through the official site.

Others said they bought visas through agents that were not valid on arrival, forcing them to buy an official visa at the airport – meaning they paid twice.

Another Australian traveler also fell victim to a scam while on a family vacation in Bali, when her and her partner’s belongings were stolen.

Melbourne-based social media influencer Anna De Rieu and her partner were scammed $150,000 in government aid payments under their name after the scammers hacked into her MyGov account.

Ms De Rieu said she had no idea that so much money had been debited until she went to log into her account herself, with access blocked for her and her husband.

They were then notified by Centrelink that their details and home addresses had been changed several times and that there was money in their name.

Ms De Rieu said it took about six months to fix the problem and she now fears she could fall victim to more hacks in the future.