Many individuals, especially university students tend to explore Facebook groups or public pages to look for a job as employers often advertise job vacancies on social media platforms. But, of course, with anything that’s advertised on social media, there is always the possibility of being scammed or blackmailed.
Recently, an online scam on Facebook has been brought to light, with a victim sharing with WORLD OF BUZZ her experience with the scammer.
A female university student (who wishes not to be identified) was looking for a part-time job via Facebook groups where she usually searches. She stumbled upon a Facebook account under the name “Chloe Wong” that had put up a job post looking for “20 university students to fill in a survey”.
The victim applied via Facebook Messenger where the ‘job poster’ required her to send her personal details including her bank account number and full-body photos of herself. However, as soon as she had provided all her personal details, she was immediately blocked by the poster.
The next day, the poster used a different account under the name “Ashley Liew” and threatened the victim for naked photos of herself. When the victim refused, the full-body photos that she had sent was posted on other job-seeking Facebook groups with the caption, “This student wants people to taste her young legs and feet”.
The victim later found out that her photos were posted not only on Facebook groups but on online dating applications as well. She was also harassed by foreign phone numbers including 27 missed calls from a New Jersey number.
“I was terrified. I did not know what will they do with my pictures,” she said.
A week later, she received another message from a foreign number asking her to send a voice message.
The victim then filed a police report at Setapak police station and reported the poster on Facebook. She later changed her phone number and decided to speak up about the incident on social media to raise awareness.
“I wanted to protect my reputation and I did not want other innocent people to get scammed and harassed,” she said.
However, she wasn’t the only one who fell victim to this scam. Another female student (who also wishes not to be identified) saw the victim’s post and revealed that she was also scammed by “Chloe Wong” who was looking for “Chinese female part-time promoters”.
She later encountered the same unfortunate circumstances and was harassed by messages sent from foreign numbers.
Here are screenshots of the conversation:
“I felt disgusted and scared, and I am also worried about other girls,” she mentioned.
She has since posted the story of the incident on her own social media account and changed her handphone number as well.
If ever you encounter a scammer online, here are some steps you can take:
- Stay calm (when threatened etc.)
- Block or report the person’s account
- Report to MCMC through their complaint channel
- Lodge a police report
Please always be aware and check on the validity and credibility while applying for jobs online. Always protect your privacy and safety in this risky digital world!
Also Read: Malaysian Girl Allegedly Gets Scammed By FB Store That Claims To Sell ‘Original Rejected Sneakers’
