Hong Kong’s finance chief warns against suspected phishing scam after his picture appears in online adverts
- Paul Chan files police report over suspected scam involving adverts with pictures of him to lure victims to cryptocurrency trading platform
- Online articles include purported interviews with Chan praising new cryptocurrency trading system for bringing fortunes
Hong Kong’s finance chief on Saturday warned people against falling for a suspected phishing scam after his image was used in online advertisements to lure victims to a cryptocurrency trading platform.
The incident prompted Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po to make a report to police – the most senior official to have asked the force for a follow-up investigation into such scams.
The online articles had embedded a picture of Chan and included content purported to be interviews with him praising a new automatic cryptocurrency trading system for bringing fortunes to many users. They also included a link to the platform.
“It has helped many ordinary people in Hong Kong, mainland China and North America to build a fortune overnight. You might be in doubt, as it sounds so unbelievable,” the advert falsely quoted Chan as saying.
Another advert even described the finance chief as an award-winning singer and actor.
