Bula
Scammers are using love to get their hands on cold hard cash by targeting older and retired women. Acting Director Economic Crime Reshmi Dass revealed during the National Scam Awareness Week event held at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva that there are close to 10 cases before the Courts as she shared how a woman lost around $500,000 due to a fraudulent romance scheme. She said perpetrators sweet talked the women – who were between 60 and 70 years – into sending nude pictures of themselves and then threatened to expose them on social media. That’s the big news on the front page of The Fiji Times for Thursday, August 29.
We also have a story about the fact that the Methodist Church in Fiji has not made a decision on its relationship with a partner church that accepts LGBTQ clergy and same-sex marriage. A Fijian church community from Nevada, USA, said they made a formal request for the MCIF to sever ties with the United Methodist Church. MCIF general secretary Jolame Lasawa said the church has acknowledged the issue raised by the American delegation, however, they would have to tread carefully because of an initial agreement it has with the UMC.
And the lead in Business is about the revelation that Germany’s kava ban is political and not scientific in nature. This is according to German kava scientist Dr Mathias Schmidt. Speaking to The Fiji Times of the now 24-year old ban by Germany’s Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices or BfArM, Dr Schmidt urged Fiji and other kava producing countries in the Pacific to seek diplomatic help from Germany’s Minister of Foreign Affairs as well as the European Union as the scientific community is not aware that the ban was not scientifically but politically motivated. More on PAGES 13-14.
Synopsis
Love can be blind sometimes!
The revelation that retired women are becoming targets of romance scams is cause for concern.
Acting Director Economic Crime Reshmi Dass raised this issue at the National Scam Awareness Week event at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva on Monday.
It is serious when it robs victims of their dignity, their image and reputation, and their money!
Ms Dass spoke about the case of a woman who reportedly lost around $500,000 because of such a fraudulent romance scheme.
She spoke about her team receiving complaints, and revealed some of the victims were retired women who shared their nude pictures with the person they were communicating with.
So the way the scheme works is that perpetrators threaten to expose victims on social media, defaming their character, unless they give them (perpetrator) money!
So, finding themselves in a dilemma, victims would give up money to keep perpetrators quiet!
Sadly, it certainly isn’t a workable solution for the victims who find themselves at the mercy of the perpetrators.
And it is like a never-ending cycle. They are constantly being misled, threatened, and stressed out!
Ms Dass said similar cases were before the court.
In the case of the woman who reportedly paid out up to $500,000, the perpetrator was a young man pretending to be living overseas and using a WhatsApp number.
He focused on getting in touch with women who were already retired or were in their 60s and 70s.
The victim in this case eventually discovered her perpetrator was a local and reported him to the authorities.
We say personal information must be guarded well. The case before us reflects the gravity of these scams.
As we point out above, they rob the victims of their financial resources, and undermine their dignity, reputation, and image.
It is a disturbing trend and this manipulative action is stressful for victims. It does raise the question of why are people been easily manipulated to give up nude pictures of themselves to people they have never met in person? Why are they even engaging in such discussions? Clearly there are perpetrators who are probably quite good at what they are doing and have no concern for their victims.
So, we highlight the need for vigilance and the need to report suspicious activities. Let’s be cautious about sharing personal information and report fraudulent activities.
The message is quite clear really. Safeguard your personal information and remain vigilant against potential scams!
Let’s be reminded about the impact of social media on our lives. Let’s be reminded about artificial intelligence for instance, and the many uses of social media portals. Let’s talk about this. Let’s engage. Let’s talk about misinformation and disinformation while we are at it! And for parents and guardians, let’s keep a tab on our children’s activities on the internet!
