There is an ongoing job scam where individuals are approached to fabricate reviews on platforms like Google Maps and Booking.com. Unfortunately, these seemingly legitimate job opportunities are devised to exploit victims financially.
The process typically initiates with scammers contacting potential victims through messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Telegram, and Facebook Messenger. Subsequently, victims are instructed to submit a series of reviews on reputable websites like Google Maps and various hotel booking platforms. After completing the initial reviews, scammers deposit money into the victim's account for the first job. However, the real scam unfolds after the second job.
From the second job onward, scammers promise larger payouts to victims for each review, contingent upon the victims depositing an amount into the scammer's account first. The scheme operates in a way that, for the second job, in order to receive RM50 after writing the review, the victim must deposit RM100, resulting in a supposed return of RM150. This pattern continues, with increasing amounts for each subsequent job, always requiring a deposit from the victim. Ultimately, the scammers vanish with the deposited funds, leaving the victims at a financial loss.
The victims initially does not realize the scam because of the following factors :
- actual money for the 1st job is banked into victim's account
- scammers sometimes posing as the employees of the company (e.g. Google, Booking.com)
- the act of actually completing a review on a legitimate website (e.g. Google, Booking.com)
More reports on this scam is published on Star Papers Online. This scam is also not isolated cases, there are many victims who have fallen victim to the scam.
