Scam alert: Beware of lookalike sites peddling fake news

PETALING JAYA: Star Media Group Bhd, which owns The Star’s online portal, would like to alert the public to a fake lookalike site that is promoting an online gaming platform.

It has come to the company's attention that a picture, depicting a site which misuses The Star's logo, is making the rounds on social media.

The picture shows the spoof site displaying an article titled "Genting Berhad is betting its future on its new online gaming platform MYBET88" dated Oct 17.

This is a misrepresentation of The Star's actual news coverage.

A check on the Metro News section showed there was no such article published on Monday (Oct 17).

Observant receivers of the picture have also noticed incorrect keywords on the fake site.

For instance, it shows a "Political Crisis" keyword on the "Topics" strap above the headline – as well as an outdated year for one of our most popular events – when there are no such keywords on the actual site's Topic Bar at present.

Other fake lookalike sites have also been spotted, with misleading articles titled "This Story Will Make You Think Twice About Going to Genting Casino", "M'sian Man Loses It All After 18x Winning Streak at Genting Casino", "Present Your Genting Membercard and Get Up To RM888 Free Cash Online with Only 1 Time Rollover" and "Genting Members Exploited MYBET88 for RM87m in Bonuses After Learning It's Like Free Money".

Star Media Group would like to reiterate that it has carried no such articles publicising such online gaming platforms.