![French military police walk in front of a banner for the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics in front of the National Assembly building in Paris on May 5, 2024.](https://sports.inquirer.net/files/2024/05/20240509_1715259931-539.jpg)
French military police walk in front of a banner for the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics in front of the National Assembly building in Paris on May 5, 2024. AFP
PARIS—French authorities are preparing to battle a wave of fraud targeting millions of visitors during this summer's Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Processed foods advertised as „homemade breakfasts,“ adding fake stars to hotel ratings and not listing room rates are among the traps anti-fraud police expect to set on unsuspecting visitors. There is one.
So far, authorities say the incidents are minor and remain limited to the hotel sector, according to the Treasury Department's Consumer Protection Division.
Detection method
But this cannot continue, the department warned, and said it was working „around the Olympic Games and around „Checks on companies will be strengthened,“ said Sara, director of the department. Lakoche told reporters.
More than 4,000 inspections of businesses had already been carried out, and more than 6,000 were to be carried out in the future, all aimed at preventing fraud, including false Olympic-related advertising and fake Games products. It was something I did.
The investigation, conducted by a total of 2,900 anti-fraud agents, will include advanced detection methods such as X-rays of suspicious products.
„We're starting to identify some small issues,“ Lakoche said.
These included a fictitious airport shuttle service and the removal of negative customer reviews from hospitality websites.
The force encouraged people to report fraud using the dedicated app SignalConso, which is also available in English for foreign tourists.