Loan sharks preying on household debt crisis by posing as govt agencies
Loan sharks posing as government agencies were responsible for almost half of the top 10 fake-news items circulating in Thailand last week, according to the Digital Economy and Society (DES) Ministry.
Thailand’s household debt has seen a sharp increase over the past 10 years from 59.3% of GDP in 2010 to 86.9% last year.
In its weekly update on Sunday, the department warned people not to be fooled by fake messages offering loans from the Government Savings Bank (GSB) and Social Security Office.
The rest of the top 10 was made up of a variety of other scams and misinformation.
The ministry’s anti-fake news centre monitored 3.2 million online posts and messages during the week and found 210 were spreading fake news on 127 topics, 49 of which were government policies. Forty-four were about consumer and healthcare products and 23 were about the economy.
The top 10 fake news items circulating last week were:
1. GSB offering fixed-rate loans via the website Asaia Money.
2. GSB offering a loan called “Prachachon Sukjai” (People’s Happiness) which can be applied for via mobile phones.
3. GSB teaming up with the Social Security Office to offer loans that require no guarantor.
4. You can renew your driver’s licence via a Facebook page endorsed by the Department of Land Transport.
5. 14 signs that your body has become too hot.
6. Krung Thai Bank is offering loans on a Facebook page.
7. The Social Security Office is sending messages to people via mobile phones to check their Covid-19 treatment rights.
8. GSB’s MyMo application is now offering loans via messenger service.
9. The Department of Land Transport has opened a Line account for people to apply for driver’s license.
10. Sending a bank transfer slip that has QR code to others makes your account vulnerable to hacking.
To report fake news, contact Line @antifakenewscenter, twitter.com/AFNCThailand, or call centre 1111 ext 87. People can check on the latest fake news circulating at www.antifakenewscenter.com
