BEIJING: A man in eastern China was arrested for operating more than 400 mobile phones simultaneously to enhance his chances of winning gifts in live-streams.
The man, surnamed Ma, was discovered managing the hundreds of devices in a small garage within a residential compound in Jiangsu province in August, as reported by China Newsweek on Dec 9.
An elderly passer-by noticed the unusual activity in Ma’s garage and reported it to the police, suspecting it to be a scam operation.
Last year, reports emerged about a Chinese fraud company that promised to boost live-streamers’ traffic and promote their businesses, but instead used hundreds of phones to fabricate viewer engagement.
However, the police investigation into Ma revealed a different scenario.
Ma admitted that he utilised the phones, each linked to a separate live-streaming platform account, to access the same live-stream and increase his chances of winning the so-called “lucky bags”.
This scheme was feasible for Ma because the “lucky bags” only required a member of the audience to click a button to send a specific message and wait for the prize to be awarded. The live-streamers provided the gifts and determined the contents of the lucky bags.
Ma stated that he had won various items, ranging from inexpensive daily necessities to printers and the latest iPhone models, which he then sold on second-hand e-commerce platforms.
He claimed he could earn between 10,000 and 20,000 yuan (US$1,400 and US$2,800) a month.
Ma did not insert SIM cards into the phones, which are necessary for registering new accounts on Chinese social media platforms. Instead, he bought existing accounts from others online.
A passer-by noticed Ma managing hundreds of mobile phones arranged on shelves and suspected it was a scam operation, prompting them to alert the police. Photo: Weibo
A passer-by noticed Ma managing hundreds of mobile phones arranged on shelves and suspected it was a scam operation, prompting them to alert the police. Photo: Weibo
Since these real-name registered accounts contained personal information, the police charged Ma with infringing on the personal information of others, which is illegal.
While the police did not disclose the specific penalty, according to Chinese Criminal Law, individuals who obtain, sell, or provide citizens’ personal information could face up to three years in prison or a fine.
Mainland social media was taken aback by Ma’s determination to win gifts.
“It’s not inexpensive to buy 400 smartphones and secure the bandwidth necessary for all his operations. He must have been very obsessed with the lucky bags,” commented one user on Douyin.
Another user noted that he had also seen others using multiple phones to enter raffles for lucky bags during live-streams. “The lucky bags offer a lazy alternative for some people to make a living,” he added. - South China Morning Post
