Stunner Opens Up About TikTok R30k Scam, SA Appalled by Trend: "People Are So Gullible"
- A prevailing online scam seems to have struck a chord with a local social media user, who took to putting the trend on blast
- In a short tweet, @_Sanelle relayed an experience about how someone she works with was conned out of R30 000 on TikTok
- The post immediately caught the attention of chirpy locals, who flooded the tweep's mentions to impart similar experiences
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Online scams are on the rise, with cybercriminals finding new and more advanced ways of conning unsuspecting and sometimes desperate people out of their money.
In an article titled 6 Common TikTok Scams To Be Aware of in 2021 by Payback Ltd – a company claiming to be one of the leading chargeback firms specialising in online trading scams – the most prevalent money-swindling tactics used by scammers on the video-focused social networking service are revealed.
Source: UGC
According to the article, these are adult content TikTok scam; TikTok scam apps; fake celebrities; more likes and followers; TikTok scam email phishing and bot accounts.
In much the same way, a local Twitter user, @_Sanelle, brought the stark reality of internet crime into sharp focus by revealing that a colleague of hers had been scammed out of tens of thousands of rands on the popular short-form video-sharing app.
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The tweet read:
"This other lady at work got scammed R30k. Why would you try to buy a car on TikTok?!"
And this was the exact question on the minds of the more than 18 000 people who liked the tweet. What's more, the post attracted over 3 600 retweets and saw nearly 600 comments lighting up the comments section as Saffas scrambled to get in a say.
Among the plethora of comments, users shared their own experiences, wither first-hand observing someone close to them falling prey, with many others expressing shock at the depravity of criminals.
Netizens take bite at the cherry
Despite sparing a thought for the "gullible people" who fall victim to these scams, tweeps aimed a few shots. Briefly News takes a look at some of the attention-catching reactions to the post below.
@HLABARINTO wrote:
"Reminds me of my friend, last year he got scammed over 15k. He wanted to buy an Audi A3 on Facebook. Only found about it when he wanted me to lend him 4k because the scammers wanted more. When I told him shit that he got scammed he then ghosted me. Mara I had to laugh at him 1st."
@VenisonVenus said:
"Fine. She got scammed. But how do you go from dancing on Tiktok to buying a car? It's TikTok! From #UmlandoChallenge to enquiring about a car? Nah. Something is wrong with her."
@Bongy_Mak added:
"I can believe this, I went with a woman I had just met to an ATM and withdrew all the money in my account and gave her gladly. Was only after she got into a car and drove away that realized what I had just done."
Online romance scams on the rise in SA
Elsewhere, Briefly News reported that when the bug of love stings in the heart, it is hard to ignore it. Love can spring up in the most unexpected of ways. It is a feeling that comes like thunder and strikes like lightning.
Love is blind – so they say, it makes the world go round – so they attest. The internet has made it easy for single people to find love at the click of a button. But online romance is not always what it appears to be.
There are always lurking lice willing to take advantage of broken hearts. The recent arrest of eight foreign nationals termed 'The Black Axe' sparked a nationwide debate but the plight of the victims was seldom highlighted.
Source: Briefly News
