KUALA TERENGGANU: A man was left in the lurch after losing RM13,460 in an online job scam involving liking and subscribing to YouTube videos and channels.
Terengganu police chief Datuk Mazli Mazlan said an investigation was initiated on April 21 involving a 50-year-old self-employed victim.
"The victim claimed to have received a WhatsApp message from an unknown number offering online job opportunities by liking and subscribing to YouTube videos, promising lucrative payments.
"Initially, the victim was assigned the first three tasks and received the promised payment of RM15 for each one. Feeling confident, he proceeded with further tasks expecting higher returns, as he was offered RM20 each for the fourth and fifth tasks," he said in a statement today.
To earn the RM20, the victim was required to complete a sixth task, with the promise of a larger return of RM130, added Mazli.
"However, the victim had to deposit RM100 of his own money. After receiving payments for up to the ninth task, he felt more confident to proceed with tasks 10 to 12 but had to deposit RM300 into the scammer's account to receive RM390.
The victim, who did not suspect anything and was simply looking to earn extra money for Hari Raya Aidilfitri, made transactions amounting to RM1,000 after being promised a return of RM1,300.
Mazli said the victim feel suspicious when he failed to receive the money back after transferring RM4,860 in an attempt to 'fix' his mistake on the 18th task. Desperate to recover his money, the victim took on more tasks and had to deposit RM17,200.
Due to a lack of funds, he borrowed from family members and managed to gather RM7,200.
However, after making the transactions, he was informed that the withdrawals could not be credited to his account because he failed to complete the tasks assigned.
"Instead, the victim was asked to make further payments, resulting in total loss of RM13,460," he said.