An online scammer is using Yvonne Chaka Chaka’s name and image.
Many South African celebrities have fallen victim to online scams or have had their social media accounts hacked.
Some have fallen victim to fraud because they are in the spotlight and their names are easily recognizable to fans, which make them easy targets for criminals. International stars like Sidney Poitier, Sylvester Stallone, Steven Spielberg, and Leonardo DiCaprio have been victims of scams, and locally Naak Musiq, Rebecca Malope, and many others have fallen victim to social media hacking and scams.
Read more l Metropolitan CMO Tlalane Ntuli on how women can climb the corporate ladder and have the family life of their dreams
The latest victim is the Princess of Africa Yvonne Chaka Chaka, who fell victim to a scam after a criminal created a TikTok account requesting money through her foundation. Taking to social media, Yvonne cautioned people against the scammer.
“I have just come to realise that someone has started a TikTok account in my name, with all my pictures linked to the Princess Of Africa Foundation,” she said.
“People have been donating money and others asked to put money on Bitcoin.”
She warned that people should not fall for the trick.
“It’s a big scam, please do not put any money, it’s a scam. We love you and appreciate your support.”
Celebrities who have been scammed or hacked
Rebecca Malope
Gospel singer Rebecca Malope once fell victim to a scam when someone hacked her phone and sent messages to her contact list saying she had been arrested for speeding and needed R3000 bail. She quickly alerted her contacts on social media to be cautious.
Bonang Matheba
Media personality, Bonang Matheba has had her name being used by followers in scams. Thye have created many fake accounts pretending to be her. One of her fans fell victim to a person pretending to be Bonang on Facebook. The fake account user said she was stuck on the highway, and she could not purchase airtime from her app as the signal was “poor”, another warning. Apparently, Bonang was busy in a studio, and she needed R100.
Boity Thulo
Boity Thulo has also been scammed on Twitter after people started using the platform to ask for money. Boity has often donated money to fans in need and she is flooded by fans asking for financial assistance. One of her followers asked Boity for a donation to purchase a pair of size six school shoes for his brother. It is not clear if she was aware of the warnings her followers sent but it seems the money was sent, but for the star being conned is “okay”.
Naak Musiq
Singer and actor Anga Makhubalo has had his Twitter account hacked. The hacker changed Naak Musiq’s profile picture along with the hashtag #YeniProfilResmi, however, he soon recovered his account.
We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
In times of uncertainty you need journalism you can
trust. For only R75 per month, you have access to
a world of in-depth analyses, investigative journalism,
top opinions and a range of features. Journalism
strengthens democracy. Invest in the future today.
