Retired banker loses $3.5m after falling for Instagram 'hotel-rating' job scam

A retired bank executive has been swindled out of nearly HK$3.5 million over two months after falling for a deceptive "click-and-rate" job scam advertised on Instagram. 

The case is part of a broader surge in online employment fraud, with police revealing they have recorded nearly 30 job-hunting scams in the past week alone, resulting in total losses exceeding HK$8 million. 

According to the police cybersecurity force, the retired executive was lured by a social media advertisement offering handsome profits in exchange for boosting online hotel booking ratings. 

After showing interest, the victim was contacted via WhatsApp by scammers who directed them to register on a fraudulent website. 

Over the next two months, the victim was instructed to transfer money into more than 20 unrecognized personal bank accounts under the illusion of topping up their virtual work account. 

To build trust in the beginning, the fraudsters deposited about HK$50,000 back into the victim's account, claiming it was earned profit when in reality they were simply returning a portion of the victim's own money. 

The victim went on to make over 70 separate transactions before finally realizing they had been deceived.

Authorities have urged the public to remain highly vigilant against job opportunities offering suspiciously high returns for simple tasks and to avoid clicking on unverified links. 

Residents are strongly encouraged to use the newly upgraded, artificial intelligence-powered version of the "Scameter" mobile application to evaluate fraud risks before making any financial transactions.

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