After sharing with you some of the frauds done through technology in the first part of this story, and looking at how it works using mobile money scamming and how you could protect yourself, now we are going to see how these fraudsters updated their tricks and started scamming people based on their weaknesses.
In the first story we saw how fraudsters first get to know you, then send you a message tricking you that you have received money, and later ask you to return that money claiming it was mistakenly sent to your phone. Sometimes, if you are not someone who thinks twice, you rush and send back that money, only to later check your balance and find it gone.
After people became aware of this method of using scamming messages, they then brought another way, which is first doing research on the person they want to scam. They study him well, they know his family, they know a child or person he loves the most, they know where he lives, they know the kind of job he does, and other details. Often this is done by someone who already knows you, and in fact is the one scamming you.
Once they have studied you, when they want to scam you they look for something that can make you give out your money without thinking, depending on your weak points. Sometimes they lie to you that your child has had an accident, or that your parent had an accident, or they lie to you about a job, depending on what they see will make you release money quickly. In this story I am going to give you the story of how I was scammed with a promise of a job.
The first example is how I personally was scammed of 43,000 Rwf after finishing secondary school. One day when I was staying at my elder brother’s place, my brother had gone to work when his phone rang. The person who called him knew him well, knew his names, knew where he lived, and even knew mutual acquaintances. After introducing himself, they talked for a short while, then that person told my brother: “Have you finished secondary school so that I can recommend you for a job?” My brother replied: “Yes, I finished, but I already have a job, though I can recommend someone else who doesn’t have one. By the way, what kind of job is it?”
That person who was pretending to be someone familiar told him that the job he wanted to recommend was to be a stock manager in a construction company working in Kanombe, because the young man who was working there was going to school and leaving before finishing his contract. He said: “The young man had signed a 3-year contract but he is leaving with 1 year and 8 months remaining. Whoever replaces him will continue on that contract for the remaining 1 year and 8 months, and if they work well, they will extend the contract.”
My brother quickly understood it, and since he knew I needed a job, he immediately called me and told me that someone had found me a job. He told me he would give me the man’s number so I could call him and tell him that it was my brother who gave me his contact, and then he would tell me about the job. Since I had just finished secondary school and had no job, I immediately accepted, took the number, and called him.
When I called that man, I introduced myself, telling him that I got his number from my brother and that I was the one in need of a job. (Already I had unknowingly called the fraudsters.) That man then gave me other numbers, telling me they belonged to the manager of that company, and that if I called him, he would tell me the requirements and then I could start the job. I wrote the number and called the “manager” they gave me.
When I called him, I introduced myself, and he asked for my personal information. Then he told me to send a message containing all my details: my names, my parents’ names, my date of birth, my residence, and other identification. At that moment, I believed he was serious and that I was truly going to get a job. Then he started explaining to me about the job, telling me about the contract, the type of work, and so on. He told me the starting salary was 200,000 Rwf, but if I performed well it could increase. He also told me that there was extra money given twice a week when I went with the truck that transported materials, so that in a week I could make more than 20,000 Rwf. He also said the company had staff housing in case I wanted to stay there, but if I wished I could just go home after work.
Immediately I felt like this was the job, I felt like I was about to become rich and change my family life, and I too would live well like other young men. The manager then told me to meet them at the company office in Kanombe, bringing my ID and two passport photos. I hurried to take photos, got them, and prepared to go to the office to sign the contract and start the job.
After preparing, that “manager” called me again and told me he wanted to let me know that since I was going to replace an employee, I would pay for the work uniform and also for insurance. He said they would pay 60% while I covered 40%. I said there was no problem, since I thought earning 200,000 Rwf per month would make that easy. He then told me I had to pay for those things first because I couldn’t start work without a uniform or insurance.
I didn’t think at all that this was fraud because I was already blinded by the excitement. Since I was the one who had called them first, I thought they were not people desperate for money, but professionals. They had already exploited my weak point—that I had no job and badly needed money. The salary they promised me made me believe my life was about to change. I then asked him how much money was needed.
He told me 73,500 Rwf was needed in total, but that I had to send at least 43,000 Rwf so their accountant could pay the insurance, since he was going to pay for other employees too. He told me to send 43,000 Rwf to the accountant, and by noon I should be at the office to sign the contract.
He then gave me the accountant’s number so I could call him and ask how to send the money. Since I had 50,000 Rwf saved in my Equity account, I decided to give it to them, thinking I would get it back after receiving my first salary. I spoke with the accountant, he gave me the number, and I immediately sent 43,000 Rwf without thinking twice because my mind was already dead.
I then took a motorbike, but the “manager” called again and told me that when I reached Remera, I should wait for the company car to take me to Kanombe, since they wouldn’t allow me to enter alone as a new person. While on the motorbike near Remera, my mind suddenly woke up as if I had been pulled from deep sleep. I jumped inside and said: “My God, they scammed me!” I told the rider to stop there, got off, and walked away in pain, my head burning as I realized I had been scammed.
I went and sat somewhere thinking about it, remembering how it started from my brother being deceived, how it came to me, how I had given them my details, how they promised me a high salary, and more. While I was thinking, the “manager” called me again asking where I had reached. I didn’t tell him I knew they had scammed me, instead I told him a location.
He quickly asked me if I had a bank account so I could give it to him, since they had seen I sent the money from a bank account. I said yes, but I didn’t give it to him. As we continued talking, he kept insisting I had to send the remaining 30,000 Rwf while waiting for the company car. I told him I didn’t have it, and I would only get it after signing the contract.
He kept trying to trick me, but since I had already realized, it failed. I pretended not to know, hoping to discover who they really were, but they kept insisting. They even told me to borrow from someone, but still it failed. Later the “manager” told me to call the first man who gave me his number to see if he could help me. When I called him, he told me to try and find some money and he would add the rest, and I could pay him back after my salary. He kept sweet-talking me, but I had no more money.
I then called my brother and told him everything. He advised me not to tell them that I had discovered the scam, so we could try to find out who they were. I spent three more days communicating with them, but they too kept talking to see if they could still get more money from me. My brother later investigated and found that the man who called him was not the person he thought, but another person who had studied him closely.
In the end, I lost my hard-earned money. What still hurts me is that I never reported them to RIB so they could be investigated and maybe caught, to prevent them from scamming others. That is how I became a victim of a scam that was originally aimed at my brother, but turned against me.
This story has a very important lesson you should learn. Let us see how you can protect yourself from this second type of fraud.
Avoid believing everyone who calls you claiming to have found you a job, especially when you don’t know them well. If that job really exists, they would rather give it to someone they know personally or a close friend, not a stranger.
Avoid anyone who asks you for money before giving you what they promised. If it’s a job, tell them you will pay only after you have started receiving salary. Unless it is a government-recognized company operating legally, but I strongly believe no legal company will ever ask you for money before starting work.
Avoid all numbers that call you promising miracles, and also avoid giving them to others, because as you heard, I fell into their trap simply because I was given the number by someone I trusted more than anyone.
When you are scammed, don’t keep it to yourself. It is not shameful, as anyone can be scammed. By sharing, others also learn the tricks used by fraudsters and avoid them.
Also, when you are scammed, quickly report to RIB so they can follow up those criminals.
My friend, There are so many ways people can scam others. That is why in part three of this story we will talk about another new method they have started using to scam people.
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