Think twice before you like another blogger.
The Bitdefender Labs team has discovered a new scam scheme in which criminals send messages from an unknown number, most often with the code of an African country, promising payment for likes of videos on YouTube.
Bitdefender specialists participated in such a scheme and found out that scammers ask for personal information, including WhatsApp number, age, profession, full name and bank account number, before asking the victim to put likes and subscribe. Similar job ads were also found in Facebook groups offering remote work or high pay for likes and subscriptions to YouTube channels.
Researchers were instructed to put likes on three YouTube videos and send screenshots as proof. Victims are then asked to subscribe to the Telegram channel and discuss payment details with the administrator. After providing the required data, the researchers received a reward of 30 RON (RONIN) (about $6.50). Scammers promise daily tasks.
Chat with a scammer in WhatsApp
The second phase of fraud begins after the victim joins the Telegram channel. The victim is invited to a VIP group to perform higher-paying tasks, which can be accessed for a fee of $21.66 to $1,083. After payment, scammers block the victim's phone number and stop communicating. The Telegram channel publishes screenshots of payments to other victims to build trust among new subscribers.
Conditions for joining theVIP channel (left) and screenshots of payouts (right)
Scammers claim that users can earn 30 RON by putting likes on 3 videos, and earn from 200 to more than 2,000 RON per day. One of the scammers introductions to the offers was as follows (translated from Romanian): "We are a global multinational company, and we are currently working as a social media team to increase the visibility of YouTube stars and receive payment for subscriptions and likes to YouTube stars' videos. We have to fill out a form to pay you a salary of 30 RON."
Bitdefender explained that this is not the first time that fraud is presented as a way to make money. However, this time the victims actually get paid, which is a very successful tactic, as it creates a sense of trust and convinces users to pay for their participation in the VIP channel to earn easy money on such simple tasks as liking videos on YouTube.
Remember that there is no easy money. To avoid such scams, be careful of recruiters who demand high payments for simple tasks such as watching videos or liking YouTube videos, encourage users to download Telegram, or require a pre-payment for access to additional features.
Meta and its products are considered extremist and their activities are prohibited in the Russian Federation.
The Bitdefender Labs team has discovered a new scam scheme in which criminals send messages from an unknown number, most often with the code of an African country, promising payment for likes of videos on YouTube.
Bitdefender specialists participated in such a scheme and found out that scammers ask for personal information, including WhatsApp number, age, profession, full name and bank account number, before asking the victim to put likes and subscribe. Similar job ads were also found in Facebook groups offering remote work or high pay for likes and subscriptions to YouTube channels.
Researchers were instructed to put likes on three YouTube videos and send screenshots as proof. Victims are then asked to subscribe to the Telegram channel and discuss payment details with the administrator. After providing the required data, the researchers received a reward of 30 RON (RONIN) (about $6.50). Scammers promise daily tasks.
Chat with a scammer in WhatsApp
The second phase of fraud begins after the victim joins the Telegram channel. The victim is invited to a VIP group to perform higher-paying tasks, which can be accessed for a fee of $21.66 to $1,083. After payment, scammers block the victim's phone number and stop communicating. The Telegram channel publishes screenshots of payments to other victims to build trust among new subscribers.
Conditions for joining theVIP channel (left) and screenshots of payouts (right)
Scammers claim that users can earn 30 RON by putting likes on 3 videos, and earn from 200 to more than 2,000 RON per day. One of the scammers introductions to the offers was as follows (translated from Romanian): "We are a global multinational company, and we are currently working as a social media team to increase the visibility of YouTube stars and receive payment for subscriptions and likes to YouTube stars' videos. We have to fill out a form to pay you a salary of 30 RON."
Bitdefender explained that this is not the first time that fraud is presented as a way to make money. However, this time the victims actually get paid, which is a very successful tactic, as it creates a sense of trust and convinces users to pay for their participation in the VIP channel to earn easy money on such simple tasks as liking videos on YouTube.
Remember that there is no easy money. To avoid such scams, be careful of recruiters who demand high payments for simple tasks such as watching videos or liking YouTube videos, encourage users to download Telegram, or require a pre-payment for access to additional features.
Meta and its products are considered extremist and their activities are prohibited in the Russian Federation.
