KUALA LUMPUR: A new form of scam using the profile pictures of innocent social media users to front fraudulent businesses is emerging, says Datuk Seri Michael Chong.
The warning by the MCA Public Services and Complaints Department (PSCD) head comes after recently receiving more than 10 cases in which scammers had used other people’s profile pictures for scams.
“This is worrying as such scams are becoming more common.
“When the scam is eventually exposed, these innocent people end up taking the blame without their knowledge.
“If not addressed, this will not only affect the innocent people’s reputation but also hurt actual genuine micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME),” he said at press conference at Wisma MCA yesterday.
A victim, who only wanted to be known as Tan, said he never expected that uploading a photograph of himself with his wife as his Facebook profile picture would turn into a nightmare.
He was shocked to learn from a friend on April 2 that a scammer had used his photograph to set up a fake food catering service recently. The discovery was made after his photograph was shared on social media by several victims who accused him and his wife of being scammers.
According to Tan, the scammer had created a Facebook account where photographs of delicious-looking catering packages were offered at cheap rates to entice customers.
Victims were told to contact a particular handphone number for enquiries and were directed to “Jerry” on WhatsApp, an account which used Tan and his wife’s photo as its profile picture.
Victims were asked to make payment through different bank account QR codes on WhatsApp but never received their food or any response from “Jerry” despite follow-up attempts to contact the individual. Tan, a sales manager, said he has never been involved in the food catering business.
“I was horrified because my Facebook profile has always been set to private yet it was somehow used by the scammer.
“It was extremely hurtful and distressing to see people online cursing my wife and me, with some even making threats against my family,” he said at the same press conference.
He hoped that victims of the scam would stop harassing him as he too was a victim.
Tan has since lodged a police report and filed a complaint with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission.
Meanwhile, Chong called on members of the public to stop harassing Tan and advised consumers to be more vigilant against fake business scams.
This includes checking online reviews and comments before making a purchase through cash-on-delivery payment options, he added.
“Just remember that if an offer or deal is too good to be true, then it is usually a scam,” said Chong.
