Bangkok, 22 October – The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned the public and investors to be careful of fraudsters who pretend to invite people to invest and cause damage. It recommends 3 things to observe carefully before investing. It revealed that they have collaborated to block more than a thousand social media accounts that are deceiving people to invest.
Mr. Anek Yoo-yuen, Deputy Secretary-General and Spokesperson of the SEC, said that currently, there are investment scams that have caused significant damage to public assets, and they often come with the use of technology in a subtle way, causing those who are invited to misunderstand that it is an invitation from a person or a licensed business operator, both securities companies (Securities Companies) and fund management companies (Asset Management Companies). From the statistics of the operation of the “Investment Fraud Hotline” in the first 9 months of 2024, the SEC’s Complaint and Whistleblowing Center received a total of 3,451 whi
stleblower reports, with 1,877 social media accounts suspected of being investment scams that coordinated with social media platform providers to block, with 99 percent of the accounts already blocked, and the rest providing advice on other investment scams.
For fraudulent behaviors found during this period, for example, scammers often advertise in advertising spaces on various online platforms, similar to general companies that advertise to stimulate purchases of products or services. The images and text of the advertisements often impersonate the name/logo of a securities company or fund management company to mislead people into thinking that it is an advertisement of the company they are referring to, along with a message inviting people to join a discussion group to listen to investment information, such as Big Lot trading. Once they join the group and show interest, the scammers will personally talk to those who are interested and convince them to invest, along with sending them a link to the real websi
te of the company they are impersonating. When it comes to the money transfer process to open a trading account, they will send a fake website link and bank account (of the scammer network, both in the names of individuals and corporations) that are not the name of the company they are impersonating.
In addition, it was found that there was a more subtle scam where the scammers would send a bank account number that was the name of the company that was impersonated to open a trading account for interested people. But after that, when transferring money to buy in the next time, they would trick them into transferring the purchase money to another account (of the scam network, both in the names of natural persons and juristic persons) that was not in the name of the company that was impersonated.
The SEC therefore warns the public to be more careful when receiving information inviting them to invest, especially through social media channels. Do not believe anything unusual and should thoroughly check the infor
mation. There are 3 points to watch out for before deciding to invest, as follows:
(1) If you are personally contacted and invited to invest through social media channels, such as sending a message on a personal LINE account or a private Facebook inbox (Messenger), suspect that it may be a scammer because most licensed business operators do not invite people to invest in private via social media.
(2) If you are invited by someone’s name/picture in an advertisement, be suspicious and ask the company that was mentioned whether that person is really an investment advisor in the company because scammers often pretend to be a reliable or reputable person. Also, check that the company is a licensed business operator.
(3) Before transferring money to pay for opening a trading account or purchasing, always check the name of the destination bank account before transferring to make sure that it is the account name of the company you wish to invest in.
‘Investment fraud is a serious threat. The SEC joins the ‘Preven
t, Suppress, Suppress’ campaign to provide knowledge and understanding to the public about finance and investment, as well as to enable them to protect themselves from investment fraud, and to integrate cooperation with various agencies to suppress it, such as blocking investment fraud platforms, etc., in order to prevent or limit damage to the public’s assets from expanding as much as possible.’
In case of doubt, you can check the list of companies and individuals that are under the supervision of the SEC at www.sec.or.th/seccheckfirst or at the ‘SEC Check First’ application. If you find any clues about suspicious activities or suspect that you have been invited to invest, call for advice or report clues at the ‘Investment Fraud Hotline’ at tel. 1207 press 22 or the ‘SEC Office’ Facebook page or SEC Live Chat at the SEC website. -511-Thai News Agency
Source: Thai News Agencyl