Scams and fraud have been around since humanity began to accumulate wealth and been introduced to greed. Celebrity and impersonate scams are on the rise as they are targeting unsuspecting victims. At the moment of writing, many Thais are falling for a new elaborate scam impersonating the famous Chang beer billionaire tycoon, Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi.
The fraudsters have created a fake news website replicating Thailand’s famous media outlet Sanook.com as reporting in an exclusive story claiming Mr. Sirivadhanabhakdi has revealed the secret to his fortune by exploiting “legal loophole.” The fraudulent article then rambles on about how everyone can receive a large sum of returns by simply investing in this “loophole” scheme for only 3 – 4 months.
The fake tycoon then introduced the automatic trading program powered by artificial intelligence (AI) dubbed “Bitcoin Loophole.” Pointing out that everyone can earn a “passive-income” of more than $30 per day with an initial investment of only $30. Many global billionaire and personalities such as Bill Gates and Elon Musk are also fallen victim by these scammers as they are claiming these popular individuals are also currently using their trading program.
In the fake article, there are pop-up ads and links which will direct victims to the Bitcoin Loophole’s website. When filling out forms and applications to start using their “AI-powered” trading service, the site prompted users to fill in their credit card information and well as making payment as “initial investment.”
The fraudulent article is now spreading on social media such as Facebook and popular messaging applications, LINE. The spread has been accelerated by the habits and culture of Thai elderlies who often share interesting news and articles to their group of friends, often ending up being a scam like this one.
One skeptic Facebook user filled in the form with curiosity but did not provide the credit card information the website required. She reported that shortly after she filled in the form, there are multiple incoming calls from foreigners pursuing her to give them her payment details and card information.
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