This is a scam to get followers ⁠— Airtel is not giving out 500,000 iPhones in Nigeria

The Facebook post, on a page named “Airtel Our World”, has been shared nearly 6,000 times since it was published on August 1. We’ve archived the post here. It says the company is handing out 500,000 Apple iPhones to Airtel users “to appreciate all their support so far”.

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Airtel has warned people to ignore this Facebook post

We contacted the Airtel Nigeria customer relations centre via social media. They told us the company was not running any such promotion. 

“Please be informed that we currently do not have any ongoing giveaway promo on the Airtel network. Kindly disregard the information,” Airtel said.

 Why do scams like this exist?

This sort of scam is popular in Nigeria; it is used to attract followers to a new Facebook page and for gathering the names, phone numbers and other personal details of unsuspecting Facebook users. 

According to Facebook’s Page Transparency -- a section which shows “information to help you better understand the purpose of a Page” and “see actions taken by the people who manage and post content” -- the page was created on July 28, 2019.

In 12 days, the page has racked up more than 12,500 followers by posting pictures of phones and claiming to be giving them out for free. We’ve archived some of the other posts on the page here, here, and here. 

As in some other parts of the world, social media accounts are often sold in Nigeria. After gaining a large number of followers and a degree of influence, the accounts can be sold and used for other purposes.

AFP found this Facebook page where such accounts are bought and sold.

The same type of trade exists on Twitter and Instagram -- here’s a screenshot of a tweet announcing the sale of an Instagram account it claims has over 200,000 followers.

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A Twitter post advertising an Instagram account for sale