Warning issued after university student loses HK$190,000 in internship scam

Hong Kong police have issued a stark warning following a sophisticated internship scam that cost a 19-year-old university student HK$190,000. The fraudsters targeted the first-year student on LinkedIn in early March, posing as an 'employment agency.' After informing her that the research assistant roles she applied for were filled, they immediately recommended a lucrative, part-time, work-from-home position requiring only a laptop. To establish legitimacy, the entire recruitment process, from initial contact to a detailed 40-minute online 'induction training' session, was conducted in fluent English. The scammers used prepared scripts to introduce a fake company's background, business model, and job duties, effectively mimicking a professional corporate onboarding process.

The case, highlighted by the police's Anti-Deception Coordination Centre (ADCC), underscores a new level of sophistication in online job fraud. The extended interaction and use of professional English were deliberate tactics to lower the victim's guard and create a false sense of security. This marks a shift from simpler phishing attempts to more elaborate social engineering schemes that exploit the career aspirations of students. Authorities are urging extreme caution, particularly for job offers that promise high remuneration with vague or minimal requirements, as these are hallmarks of such deceptive operations.