Videos are circulating on Facebook where local people are recording themselves admitting the legitimacy of the cryptocurrency scam and encouraging friends and family to sign up.

As the internet has progressed over time, the various methods of fraud have grown and evolved. Some of the most common types of fraud include phishing, spyware, identity theft, bank fraud, spam, dating scams, and now even artificial intelligence scams.

According to people, this newspaper contacted after their videos were shared on Facebook claimed the scammers hacked into the personal accounts of some of their close friends or relatives and asked them to download an app that would prompt them of their bank card information and other personal information to invest in cryptocurrencies.

The cost of living crisis has made some financially squeezed individuals more susceptible to approaches by scammers, many of whom offer fake deals and discounts in an attempt to steal personal and financial information.

ANZ issued a release urging its customers to be alert for ‘too good to be true’ investment opportunities.

ANZ Regional Executive Pacific, Sarah Stubbings, said scammers who target investors frequently get in touch with their victims out of the blue posing as representatives of reputable companies or financial institutions offering  ‘once in a lifetime’ investment opportunity.

“Scammers often have legitimate looking websites and emails and even detailed financial presentations, to help them look and sound knowledgeable. 

“These are sophisticated criminals and can be very convincing. They will encourage their victims to invest large sums of money and promise fast and substantial returns,” she said.

On the other hand, Vodafone continues to warn its customers of scammers using its name following several posts from a local page called “o le palemene o samoa” claiming to be the third party offering false and deceptive promotions under the network’s name.

Chief Financial Officer for Vodafone Samoa, Anish Chandra, said this is not the first time the network provider has warned its customers of fraudulent activities.

“We’ve always alerted our customers to be aware of these fake promotions, mostly known as phishing, these scam websites, social media platforms, emails, text messages, and websites can be difficult to spot,” he said.

"We urge all Vodafone carriers to report a bogus page and give us a call at 67121 if they receive a call, letter, email, text message, or other communication that purports to be from Vodafone and you think it might be a fraud or hoax.

Vodafone has encouraged customers to report calls or text messages containing fraudulent offers to the Office of the Regulator (O.O.T.R.)