INDUSTRY NEWS

With over 50 outlets across the country, they bring a whole new meaning to LOCAL.

Think. Shop. Support Local with Office National Responsibility and accountability are two core values of Office National. By choosing one of their Office National outlets as your office products supplier, you will be uplifting the community you live in and improving their welfare.

Their exclusive catalogues give you access to a range of leading brands and products - “If they don’t have it, they’ll source it for you”.

When it comes to business suppliers they are the solution to all your needs.

Owner managed and operated outlets guarantee you fast and efficient service delivery.

Their expectation is for the BTS market to stabilize back to pre-covid years. At Office National they want to ensure that they are the consumers’ one-stop shop for all their stationery needs.

Their 44 different e-commerce sites allow parents and teachers a pleasant online shopping experience to load and purchase their stationery school lists.

Yes, they have listed new items in their BTS Catalogue. Our catalogue is available in-store and online: https:// www.officenational.co.za/currentcatalogues

Coding and Robotics in Schools The goal of the coding and robotics subject is to help prepare students to solve everyday problems. Learners are exposed to a range of knowledge and skills that assist with critical thinking, helps them to work more creatively and collaboratively, and to adapt to a technological and information-driven world.

• Ballpoint Pens • Counter Books • Calculators • Exercise Books • Glue Sticks • Highlighters

Think | Shop | Support Local

Yes, they make the stationery shopping experience a pleasant one by making school lists available online. Ordering with the click of a button.

Based on the decision of the company to diversify and provide specific focus to relatively new product lines, Parrot Products now have three main divisions:

Parrot Products – The manufacture, supply and distribution of Presentation Products, Office Equipment and Desktop Stationery.

Parrot Interactive – Following the technological advances in the education, presentation and training sectors this division focusses on the supply and distribution of electronic presentation products and accessories.

Parrot Signage – The manufacture, supply and distribution of modular aluminium signage.

Our Research and Development team continue to research both potential finished product and raw materials across the globe to enhance our existing range.

Their Range Next Day ensures delivery of all stock product lines next day and is facilitated by fully stocked distribution warehouses in Johannesburg, Bloemfontein, Kwa Zulu Natal, Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Namibia.

A fleet of 40 vehicles across the country supports this vision and has earned them the acknowledgement, amongst their dealer base, of being one of the best suppliers in the industry.

All warehouses boast a fully computerised, paperless picking system enabling fast and accurate deliveries to their client base.

The Parrot range of products are also well represented in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Zambia.

Parrot boasts a sales presence throughout Sub Saharan Africa, offering value add calls to each of their Dealers. Their sales force understands the importance of a well-informed dealer base and to this end conduct regular product training sessions on site and customer days at regular intervals at any one of their branches.

The sales team are effective in identifying opportunities at their Dealer base for implementation of any one of a number of marketing tools they have designed to ensure the sale of any of their product lines is supported and effective.

Highly professional showrooms at each of their branches welcomes dealers and customers to view their exciting range of products.

Their newly designed website incorporates their entire product offering. Dealers who register on their website are able to place orders at a discounted rate on

line as well as view existing orders, invoices, statements, credit notes and PODs’.

Instruction manuals, installation videos, price lists and dealer resources are available at the push of a button.

A definite increase over the last two years, so hopefully a return to precovid years

Yes - they would love their supporters visit their site to see what’s new and exciting

As they are not huge players in this field it would be difficult for them to answer this, they do have products that definitely feature but they are trendsetters themselves – log onto their site, you will be amazed: Parrot Products (Pty) Ltd

This would depend on the Grade but based on what they supply, arts, crafts, glue, markers, boards and year planners

No, they pride themselves on being consistent year round

No special initiative, just the same excellence that they always deliver whether for school, office or any other area, they do have a 10% off for online orders t’s & c’s apply. �

The question is why is fraud so rife in South Africa and why are so many people affected? From a socio-economic standpoint, the answer is simple: South Africa, in fact most of Africa, has a population that are ignorant when it comes to finances, banking and the laws and protections that exist to stop fraud from occurring.

The old adage of “If something appears too good to be true, it probably is” comes to mind. With a population that is living on or below the breadline, South Africa creates perfect feeding place for predators and scam-artists. The local population is a soft target, and the unscrupulous fraudsters will prey on the aged and those with little. However, the more affluent have also been targeted.

Money mule transactions refer to the use of an account to send money abroad, but the owner of the account is not aware where the funds are being sent or their purpose. This is when a person approaches someone and asks them if they can use their account to send money to a relative in another country. The money is then sent to a person or organisation with ties to crime in some form. The owner of the account may be investigated and prosecuted. As mentioned, fraud can take many forms and this particular form is a concerning occurrence, as it is linked to terrorism, money laundering, human trafficking and drugs.

A new form of pyramid scheme has taken off though social media. Each investor is encouraged to sign up and recruit new investors (friends, family, acquaintances, and colleagues). In turn they then recruit even more investors, and a multi-level pyramid structure is formed, with the fraudster firmly on top.

Initially, the returns are great and they can convince others. However, these schemes are not sustainable. When new investors dry up, the scheme folds, leaving investors with permanent capital losses.

Phishing has been around for a while now, and it is still happening. It’s a cybercrime where the target is contacted by someone posing as a legitimate institution to lure the target into providing sensitive data like personally identifiable information, banking or credit card details, and passwords. The information is then used to access important accounts and can result in identity theft and monetary loss.

This cybercrime uses the phone to steal personal, confidential information from victims. The criminals use savvy social engineering tactics to convince victims to act, giving up confidential information and access to bank accounts.

The caller will pretend to be calling from the government, tax department, police, or the victim’s bank. They will then use threats and persuasive language to make victims feel like they must provide the information. Some cyber criminals use forceful language to frame their conversation as “helping the victim avoid criminal charges.” A second tactic is to leave threatening voicemails that tell the recipient to call back immediately or risk being arrested, having bank accounts shut down, or worse.

Smishing is a phishing cybersecurity attack conducted over mobile text messaging, also known as SMS phishing.

This is slightly different from phishing and vishing, but usually follows the same pattern of impersonation for the purpose of getting information, by using SMS. There are usually links embedded that take the user to a malicious site that records their input. Once they have your personal information and banking details, they are free to access your account.

The smishing URL link might trick you into downloading malware — malicious software — that installs itself on your phone. This SMS malware might masquerade as a legitimate app, tricking you into typing in confidential information and sending this data to the cybercriminals.

The link in the smishing message might lead to a fake site that requests you to type sensitive personal information. Cybercriminals use custom-made malicious sites designed to mimic reputable ones, making it easier to steal your information.

People playing online games sometimes purchase virtual game items in order to become better at that game. Criminals pose as players and set up fake virtual marketplaces where they claim to sell sought-after game items, but don't deliver.

Victims receive a message via email or SMS telling them they've inherited a generous sum of money from an unknown person. Criminals pose as attorneys, tax agents, and even government officials, asking for fees to be paid and personal information be handed over to start the inheritance process.

A criminal posing as someone else online will develop a friendship with the victim through social media groups or dating sites. The criminal then “sends” the victim a gift from overseas. A fake courier company calls the victim and tells them they must pay a release fee to get the package, after which they send fake SARS documents demanding more money be paid before the package is released.

Training seminars are held and speakers are presented as being extremely wealthy, having made their money from foreign exchange investments. Unfortunately, the promise of a quick buck is too good to be true. Some victims may spend their money on fake programmes that promise to optimise profits. Some even lose all of their money, occasionally within a matter of days.

Fake job frauds have been around for years. The latest one’s target people who have fairly high qualifications. Scammers advertise jobs overseas and go to great lengths to create the illusion of a legitimate job, like conducting Skype interviews with the victim. Once the victim 'gets' the job, they are told they are financially responsible for the costs of background checks, credit score checks, and their visa. In the most extreme circumstances, the victim can arrive in a foreign country without a legitimate visa and be treated by the authorities as an undocumented immigrant.�

1. An investment that requires you to recruit new investors to realise the return on your investment is a pyramid scheme. Be wary of �ered investments that classify investors or have mul�ple levels (e.g., bronze, silver, gold, pla�num and diamond). 2. If you don’t understand how an investment product generates its returns and there are no clear underlying assets, you should be cau�ous. 3. Fraudsters want to create a sense of urgency to limit the amount of �me you spend researching and thinking about the poten�al investment.

Anything sold as a “once-in-alife�me opportunity” should be avoided. 4. Though past performance doesn’t guarantee future returns, you should consider financial service providers with decent track records.

Most frauds will promise great returns, without a solid track record to back them up. 5. If the investment is not registered with a mainstream financial body, like the FSCA, it is not regulated. You should also contact financial bodies to verify the registra�on of any financial en�ty that is new or not well established. 6. The adage s�ll applies: If it seems too good to be true, then it is. If someone is manipula�ng your emo�ons to get some cash, that is absolutely a con ar�st. Trust your gut – it will help you avoid permanent capital loss.

If you get a message saying that your account has been compromised via text or email or even a call, do not give out any information. Do not text or email back and if it is a call, hang up immediately. Then call your bank’s fraud division and ask them to verify if there is an issue, they will ask you to forward the email or text to them or provide them the with the number that called. If it is legitimate, you are then assured to be speaking to the correct division, if it’s a fraud, you have protected yourself.