Man allegedly scammed out of $8k after woman on FB offered him 'better life' and trading advice
A man was scammed out of $8,000 after he was befriended by a woman online in March.
Stomper Kim said he had followed the woman's advice on foreign exchange trading and deposited money into an unofficial trading app.
“It started on Facebook, where a woman made friends with me,” he recounted.
The woman claimed to be a Thai national working in Vietnam.
“She told me she had a cousin working at Goldman Sachs in New York, and she wanted me to have a better life like her.
“She taught me how to do foreign exchange trading and said she had internal news from her cousin in New York.”
The woman named “Miss Lee” on Facebook exchanged messages with Kim, and the two eventually took the conversation to WhatsApp.
On WhatsApp, the woman instructed Kim on how to invest, with one message reading: "You are doing well, waiting for the transaction information, I will use $100,000 to enter the market with you this time, I will mainly bring you in and let you understand the real transaction."
She also wrote: "You're welcome, baby. If we use large transactions, we need to take it seriously. We still made a profit this time. Congratulations on your profit of more than US$300.
Miss Lee advised Kim to download a trading app named DYGHTBV, and introduced him to her purported cousin, Athena, who claimed to be working for Goldman Sachs in New York.
Miss Lee texted: "We grow as we learn. Tomorrow you can find Athena to obtain the cryptocurrency channel to transfer and increase your capital, so that we can have more funds to enter the market and make profits."
Kim then made a PayNow transfer of $8,000 on April 15, but soon realised he had been scammed when he was unable to withdraw money from the app.
"A woman from the Goldman Sachs finance department asked me to transfer US$1,500 if I wanted to withdraw money out from my account."
He emailed Goldman Sachs and filed a police report on May 3.
"They are very smart, they know the police can't do anything to them because they are from overseas."
In response to a Stomp query, the police confirmed that reports were lodged and investigations are ongoing.
Members of the public should be wary of installing apps that are outside of the official Google Play Store and Apple App Store, or from dubious sites.
Instead, adopt these precautionary measures:
- ADD - anti-virus/anti-malware applications to your device. Update your devices' operating systems and applications regularly to be protected by the latest security patches. Disable 'Install Unknown App' or 'Unknown Sources' in your phone settings. Do not grant permission to persistent popups that request for access to your device's hardware or data.
- CHECK - the developer information on the application listing as well as the number of downloads and user reviews to ensure it is a reputable and legitimate application. Only download and install applications from official app stores (i.e., Google Play Store for Android).
- TELL - Authorities, family, and friends about scams. Report any fraudulent transactions to your bank immediately.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the ScamShield helpline at 1799.
Anyone with information on scams can call the police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness. All information will be kept strictly confidential.
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