A group of scammers targeting lovestruck singles through China’s version of TikTok has been arrested by Shanghai police after one of its victims reported losing 13,000 yuan ($1,870) .
A woman identified by the last name Mai, south china morning post The article told police she found one of the “fortune tellers” on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, in October. I was told by a group that I could get my ex-boyfriend back.
A list of the group’s services was released by the Shanghai Police in December after Mai reported the fraud.
Police said the fortune teller had collected $115,000 in fraud before he was arrested.
Similar fortune-telling and horoscope services are very popular in China, and most people find their information through video-sharing platforms like Douyin and Bilibili, and horoscope-focused apps like Cece.
Cece founder Ren Yongliang said in an interview in 2018 that the app has grown by 3,000 new users every day since its launch. Zhang Jinyuan, CEO of Uncle Tongdao, an incredibly popular astrology account on WeChat, said: news china The internet is the best thing that has happened to the horoscope business.
In recent years, online fortune-telling has become a boom among young people in China. Divination has been ingrained in Chinese culture for centuries, but the pandemic has pushed younger generations to look to online apps for life and love answers.
In this context, however, it is clear that the group that tricked Mai and others out of their money was taking advantage of the growing popularity of online astrology and divination.
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The post-fortune teller first appeared on In The Know by scamming women out of nearly $2,000 after promising to help her get her ex-boyfriend back with magic.
Details from In The Know:
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