Hong Kong investor loses HK$45m in online scam; police report 30 fraud cases in a week
Hong Kong police received over 30 online investment fraud reports in the past week, with total losses exceeding HK$60 million. One victim, a female investment company director, lost HK$45 million after being lured by a fake environmental investment website through social media.
Hong Kong police have received more than 30 reports of online investment fraud in the past week, with total losses exceeding HK$60 million, according to a police statement on social media. Among the victims is a female investment company director who lost HK$45 million after falling for a scam involving a fake environmental investment website.
The victim told police that she initially encountered the scam after commenting on an investment-related video on the social messaging app WeChat. Scammers replied to her comment and later exchanged phone numbers with her, continuing discussions on WhatsApp about investment strategies, police said.
According to police, the scammers gained the woman's trust and then introduced her to a fraudulent environmental investment website, promising high returns. Following instructions from the website's customer service, the victim made more than 60 transfers, 90 per cent of which went into various personal bank accounts. The fake website displayed a paper profit of HK$650 million, but when the victim tried to withdraw funds, she realised she had been deceived, ultimately losing HK$45 million.
Police urged the public not to click on unknown links or trust unfamiliar investment websites. They advised using open-source verification tools to check whether a website was registered recently as a means of assessing its authenticity. They also warned that investment websites requiring payments into personal bank accounts were highly suspicious and potentially fraudulent.
