Latest news with #onlineScam
Free Malaysia Today
6 days ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Loan shark threatens to expose nude photo of 14-year-old girl
MCA public services and complaints department chief Michael Chong (standing third from left) and Ms Yap (standing third from right) during a press conference at Wisma MCA in Kuala Lumpur today. KUALA LUMPUR : A 14-year-old girl was blackmailed by a loan shark who threatened to expose her nude photo on social media after she was lured into an online job scam. The victim, identified only as Ms Yap, responded to a 'part-time job' offer sent via WhatsApp and was added to a Telegram group offering paid online tasks. She was instructed to transfer RM30 to begin the tasks and received RM60 after completing two assignments. However, during her third task, she was told she had made a mistake and was asked to top up RM500 to proceed. She was later told to pay another RM1,000, which she could not do. On July 5, she approached a loan shark known as 'Terry' who demanded a nude photo and her family's personal details as collateral after claiming it was necessary as she was underage and could not sign a loan agreement. The RM1,000 was disbursed to her via an e-wallet, and Terry instructed her to repay RM1,500 within six days. Her father settled the RM1,500 debt on Monday, believing the matter was closed. However, on Tuesday, Terry called again, claiming that the early repayment had caused a system error, and demanded RM15,000. He threatened to post the girl's nude photo on Facebook and warned that he would take further action against the family if payment was not made. The family lodged a police report on Tuesday and met with MCA public services and complaints department chief Michael Chong yesterday. Speaking at a press conference here, Chong said the case was one of 43 scam-related complaints involving women this year, including at least three incidents of extortion with nude photos. 'This case is just the tip of the iceberg,' he said. 'These scam syndicates are now working with Ah Longs (loan sharks) using platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram to exploit young women.' Chong urged parents to monitor their children's online activity and warned the youth against falling for promises of easy cash through online jobs or investment schemes. He also called for stronger enforcement and awareness campaigns to tackle the growing threat of digital exploitation involving scam syndicates and illegal moneylenders. Woman tricked into paying RM18,100 after believing she won Singapore lottery In a separate case, Ms Leong, a 24-year-old woman from Puchong, Selangor, fell victim to a transnational lottery scam after being duped by a self-proclaimed 'master' based in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Leong said the scam began after she was promised help winning the Singapore lottery. She was told to pay RM1,600 to purchase a ticket through one of the so-called master's 'followers' in Singapore. Shortly after, she was informed that she had won second prize, amounting to RM1.76 million. However, the follower claimed that the winnings were 'stuck' due to tax and banking issues, and requested RM8,000 to process their release. Believing that the prize was real, Leong made the payment and even gave an additional RM4,000 in cash as a 'gesture of gratitude'. In her attempt to claim the supposed prize money, Leong ended up borrowing a total of RM18,100 from seven different loan sharks. She sought help after realising that she had been conned.
South China Morning Post
06-06-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Malaysian swindled of US$38,000 by ‘Hong Kong woman' buying sperm to get pregnant
Having ignored warnings from the bank and police, a retiree in Malaysia lost 161,000 ringgit (US$38,000) after being lured by an online scam to become a sperm donor for a supposedly 'beautiful woman in Hong Kong'. Advertisement The 57-year-old saw an advertisement on social media stating that the woman wanted to bear a child and that there would be a reward of HK$2 million (US$254,901) for the man chosen. 'I was communicating with a person claiming to be a lawyer for the woman who said he would formalise the agreement. 'I was told to make several payments, including 10,000 ringgit for air tickets and 30,000 ringgit for protection services for her,' the man told a press conference held by the Malaysian Chinese Association's Public Services and Complaints Department head Michael Chong in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday. The retiree, who identified himself as Tan, said he continued to make more payments, including to fly in doctors who would monitor him to ensure that the baby would be born healthy. Advertisement In total, Tan parted with 161,000 ringgit to the scammers before finally deciding to call off the 'deal', without even meeting the woman or so-called lawyer in person.
Malay Mail
28-05-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
Elderly man loses over RM1.47 million in online trading scam in Ipoh
IPOH, May 28 — An elderly man suffered losses of over RM1.47 million after he fell victim to an online trading scam, Perak police chief Datuk Noor Hisam Nordin said. The man, 75, who is a company director, lodged a police report in Ipoh on May 25 about the scam that began on April 15, when he received a phone call from an unidentified woman offering him to be a partner of a company trading with another company abroad, he said. The victim agreed to become a partner after he checked the company's status and found it was operating since 1989, and was then asked to download an app called SHV Shop. 'If a customer wished to purchase an item, the victim only had to pay the selected price and would get a commission of 30 per cent,' he said in a statement last night. The victim then paid a deposit of RM22,122 via a cash deposit machine to a Maybank account of a company. 'Thinking about his would-be profits, the victim deposited a total of RM1,470,734 from April 17 to May 16 into six different bank accounts through online transfers and bank counters,' he said, adding that the victim did not receive any returns and felt that he was scammed. The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code. — Bernama
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Australian influencer shares desperate warning to fans after scammers hacked her social media accounts
Former WAG Jamie Reilly has sent a desperate warning to her followers after she fell foul of an online scam. The 38-year-old stylist and model took to her social media on Thursday to announce that her Facebook had been hacked by fraudsters. Using an elaborate story about about a 'clearance sale' to lure victims, the con artists posted photos of vehicles and equipment to Jamie's account, telling her followers that they should post a 'deposit' to secure their desired purchases. Taking to her Instagram Stories, Jamie re-posted to the phoney 'sale' post and added the caption, 'Facebook has been hacked!!! Madly trying to fix it.' The hackers had constructed a long-winded story about an 'Uncle' going into care - which motivated the phoney 'sell off'. 'Hey everyone. We're conducting a sale of my uncle's personal items, which requires significant downsizing,' the fake post said. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'To manage this transition smoothly, items are being sold on a first-come, first-serve basis. I'll be out of town assisting him with his move to an age care facility. 'To reserve an item, a deposit is necessary. This ensures that the item is held for you until I return, at which point you can view and decide on the purchase. 'Deposits are fully refundable if you choose not to proceed after viewing. 'Viewing and pickups are being scheduled this Sunday.' Items in the fake sale included a Fj45 Land Cruiser worth $10,000, a golf cart that the fraudsters priced at $2800. The con artists were also asking unsuspecting victims to fork out $28,000 for a second hand 2010 FORD F-150. Adelaide-based Jamie is married to the former AFL Crows champ Brent Reilly and boasts 2.3K Facebook friends and 45.3K followers on Instagram. It comes after Channel Seven star Larry Emdur has shared a hilarious response after falling victim to an online image scam earlier this year. The Gold Logie winner's image was spotted in January being used on multiple fake news stories that popped up as sponsored posts on Reddit. But the affable host took it all in his stride, taking to Instagram to poke a little bit of fun at the fake news. Emdur, 60, shared a screenshot of one of the offending images that claimed to be a link to a news story about Larry saying something shocking on a 'hot' microphone, next to an image of Police. Captioning the image, he revealed that when it came to speaking candidly off-air, he was a habitual offender. 'Honestly, this is the third time I've been arrested for leaving my microphone on , you'd think I would've learned my lesson,' Emdur joked. He then advised followers to avoid interacting with the suspect material, revealing there were much better ways to potentially lose their money. The offending posts, shared to Reddit, purport to be news stories from the ABC about Emdur. One post shows a picture of Emdur next to a group of Police with the headline: 'Is this the end of his career - Larry regrets his words. He didn't know the microphone was on.' A second post from the same account showed Larry apparently being interviewed on a podcast. While the posts both featured the ABC News logo, the link they took unsuspecting Redditors to was anything but.
Free Malaysia Today
15-05-2025
- Free Malaysia Today
Penang cops smash syndicate offering fake prizes
Penang police chief Hamzah Ahmad said four local residents aged between 18 and 28 admitted to working as call centre operators for the syndicate. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA : Penang police have busted an online scam syndicate run by foreigners, which offered fake gift card deals through a call centre operating from a luxury condominium in Alma, Bukit Mertajam. The operation was carried out by a team from the Seberang Perai Tengah police headquarters and Penang commercial crime investigation department after several days of surveillance and intelligence, said Penang police chief Hamzah Ahmad. 'Four local residents, including a woman, aged between 18 and 28, admitted to working as call centre operators for the past week. They were paid RM2,600 a month. 'Also at the premises were a foreign man and woman, aged 23 and 38, who entered Malaysia on May 1 using social visit passes. They are believed to be the main masterminds of the syndicate,' Bernama quoted Hamzah as saying today. He said an investigation revealed that the syndicate scammed victims with fake prizes offered through the Telegram app, using a group called 'Malay Telegroup 875' to collect personal details. The personal details were then sent to a third party, believed to be based in Kuala Lumpur, who would later contact the victims and ask them to pay certain fees to claim the fake prizes. Police seized several items from the premises, including four monitors, eight mobile phones, three modems, four keyboards, four purchase receipts and RM5,000 in cash. The suspects have been remanded until May 16 to assist in the investigation under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
