Facebook scam impersonates Emirati royal family
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on June 19, 2020 at 11:28
- 3 min read
- By Amanuel NEGUEDE, AFP Ethiopia
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“How's everything? ‼‼ This is not fraud.I am Hamdan Al Maktom My team and I are organizing the charitable organization Pandemic COVID-19 for all countries. Choose the first letter of your name and you will receive according to your name (sic),” reads the Facebook post.
The post, which we’ve archived here, has racked up thousands of shares since its publication on June 1, 2020. Similar claims were shared here and here on Facebook pages also using Emirati royals’ photographs, such as Dubai’s ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
According to the publication, the Crown Prince of Dubai Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and his “charitable organization” are handing out cash prizes to Facebook users who comment on the post with the first letter of their name.
Once a user leaves a comment below the post, the Facebook profile replies with a message asking them to click on a link to register for the prize. The post claims funds will be made available within an hour.
Fake website
“Congratulations to those who have promotions and comments. You have been chosen as the winner. Take your present now. Step 1. Registration Step 2. Make sure you are registered correctly. Step 3. Wait 60 minutes, I will contact you to send a gift,” the reply reads.
AFP Fact Check followed the link sent to users so they could claim their cash prize. However, it redirects towards a website containing several broken links.
Fake Facebook page
Running a simple search on Facebook, AFP Fact Check found that Crown Prince Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum has an official Facebook page.
Inspecting the prince’s official Facebook page, AFP Fact Check was unable to find any promotions or giveaways. The crown prince -- popularly known as Fazza -- is somewhat of a social media star, boasting ten million Instagram followers for his posts which regularly feature animals and sport.
The prince’s official website is also linked to his Facebook page, which according to Facebook’s page transparency data, was created on February 10, 2010.
The scammer’s page however was created less than a year ago, in November 2019.
AFP Fact Check contacted the marketing department of the Emirati Royal family but has not yet received a response.
Stock photos
While the Facebook pages use pictures of members of the Emirati royal family, they also feature stock photos available online.
A reverse image search using TinEye found that pictures showing cash and gold are stock photos available for download on Adobe Stock.
Facebook scams regularly ask users to follow seemingly simple steps, such a leaving a comment, in order to claim a prize, racking up followers in the process. AFP Fact Check has previously debunked similar scams in Nigeria and Uganda.
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