A so-called investment opportunity reportedly took the social media platform WeChat by storm — and stole millions from the Chinese community in the U.S. A flurry of social media posts urged people to “invest” in various household goods and electronics, promising returns of 20-40% in 1-3 months. But it was really a scam. Want to know how to spot it?
Using WeChat groups, scammers heavily promoted the investment with pictures and stories about supposed successful investors. To invest, people agreed to over-pay upfront — as much as three times the retail price — to buy items like iPhones, laptops, and furniture. In exchange, scammers promised to return investors’ money in 1-3 months. And, as a thank you for investing, investors got to keep the products for free. At first, scammers shipped products and paid out some investors, leading people to sink more money into the scheme. In truth, there was no investment and what little scammers paid out was money they stole from new investors. It was all a lie.