Police are aware of reports emerging in the Wellington police district where people have lost money though a "Task Scam". A Task Scam is a form of online fraud where individuals are deceived into completing tasks under the belief they are in employment.
Sergeant Rowen Steenkamp, Wellington Police says "Most online scams request money or personal information, Task Scams are more deceptive, requiring you to complete activities that seem easy or attainable. These include such things as, writing a specified number of online reviews for consumables like luxury travel packages, household products and cosmetics.
Sergeant Steenkamp says at least eight cases have been reported to date in Wellington including some involving significant financial losses, which includes two cases where the victims have lost in excess of $100k (137,000 and 105,000).
"In the recent cost of living crisis, we've seen an increase in people having second jobs or side hustles. As a result, what is known as a Task Scam has emerged as a particularly deceptive threat.
"These scams imitate legitimate earning opportunities, with the ability to seemingly work around your lifestyle when and how you please."
Wellington-based man *Peter is speaking out to help prevent others falling into the same trap. *Peter lost nearly $22,000 to a Task Scam last month. He was lured in by the chance of some easy money and regrets his decision.
*Peter says it's the first time he'd ever been scammed and never expected he would fall for it.
"I have lost a significant amount of my life savings, I had to stop 'working the task' because I had no money left.
"But then my (fake) "supervisor" encouraged me to borrow money from a friend, or to apply for a loan from a bank, or online loan website.
"They build trust, they monitor your progress like any other good manager would. They offer advice, before requesting more and more financial investments to enable you to move through to reviewing higher value items, it's very convincing."
"I urge people to be very careful online and avoid any schemes which offer easy cash," he says.
What is a Task Scam?
Scammers are using various online platforms, from reputable job websites to social media channels, to unsolicited approaches on chat platforms.
"The scam operates on the allure of easy money. These offers typically promise high returns for simple tasks, instantly sounding appealing. In recent cases we have seen people offered $200-500 for 30 online product reviews, with higher-end items such a cruises claiming to provide even higher rates of commission," says Sergeant Steenkamp.
The victim is assigned a manager who contacts them via Whatsapp, Telegram or Messenger using spoofing websites.
