Teen loses $110,000 in online dating scam involving gift cards

A 16-year-old boy fell victim to an elaborate online dating scam, losing over HK$110,000 after being tricked into purchasing gift cards for what he believed was an escort service.

The scam began when the teenager met a "beautiful girl" on social media platform Xiaohungshu. After moving their conversation to WhatsApp, the scammer offered intimate encounters before demanding deposit payments through gift cards.

Unaware of the fraud, the victim purchased 19 iTunes gift cards and 12 Gash prepaid cards worth HK$110,000, sharing all serial numbers via WhatsApp.

Only when the scammer demanded additional "security deposits" did the student realize he had been deceived and reported the incident to police.

Police reminded the public to exercise extreme caution with online relationships and never share gift card details. The force also said victims can utilize Apple's stop-payment mechanism for iTunes gift cards to potentially recover funds.

How to report gift card scams:

1. Visit Apple's official support page: https://getsupport.apple.com/products
2. Select "Apps & Services"
3. Choose "iTunes Store"
4. Click "Gift Cards & Codes"
5. Select "Gift Card Scams"
6. Click "Continue"
7. Choose "Contact" and select either "Phone Call" or "Chat" to initiate stop-payment