Fake investments, travel deals: UAE warn against social media scams

The UAE Cybersecurity Council has issued a warning against purchasing travel tickets through social media platforms, while the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD) has raised the alarm about fraudulent investment groups operating on these platforms—highlighting them as a prominent form of online financial fraud. The ADJD emphasized that individuals must take responsibility for protecting themselves.

As part of its awareness campaign, the Abu Dhabi Legal Awareness Center “Masouliya”—affiliated with the Judicial Department—outlined, via its official account on platform “X”, the most common online financial scams, reasons why individuals fall victim to them, and key preventive guidelines to protect their finances and investments. This initiative is part of its efforts to enhance public legal awareness.

“Masouliya” identified several key forms of online financial fraud, such as scammers forming fake groups claiming to trade in stocks and cryptocurrencies. These groups are promoted through email campaigns and social media posts, often promising unrealistic profits. The scam is further legitimized in the eyes of victims through endorsements by social media influencers.

Fraudsters typically lure investors by initially offering attractive returns. Encouraged by early “profits,” victims increase their investments, often transferring large sums to personal bank accounts. Eventually, the scammers cut off all communication, leaving investors with no returns and no means to recover their funds—falling prey to sophisticated cyber fraud.

The center identified several reasons people fall victim to such schemes:

According to the Judicial Department, the responsibility to prevent fraud lies primarily with the investor. The department advises:

In parallel, the UAE Cybersecurity Council issued a specific warning about the increasing number of scams involving the purchase of travel tickets through social media. The council outlined five key prevention tips:

The council, through its digital awareness campaigns on its official account on platform “X”, also warned against suspicious links that may compromise personal and financial data. It emphasized verifying the sender’s identity and refraining from clicking any link that requests sensitive information.

Simultaneously, the UAE Ministry of Interior recently warned the public against fake trading platforms that lure victims with promises of supplemental income. It urged individuals to verify the legitimacy of trading platforms via the official website of the Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) before engaging with them.

The Ministry encouraged the public to report any fraud cases through its Cybercrime Reporting Platform available on its official app.

As part of its campaign “Don’t Let Them Fool You”, the Ministry released a video telling the story of a man who lost AED 42,000 to a fraudulent trading platform.

The victim explained he received a message via social media claiming he could earn additional income without leaving his job. He was promised daily earnings of AED 100 to AED 325 based on the time spent on the platform. Initially, he was asked to upload an item to a fake e-commerce store and was paid AED 10 as a reward. After making a small deposit of AED 120, he received AED 156 in return. These early gains built his trust.

Over time, he invested more, eventually having AED 42,000 in his trading account. However, when he attempted to withdraw his funds, he was told there was a technical issue with the transaction code and that he needed to pay AED 42,000 to “unlock” his frozen account. When he went to the company’s alleged office, he found no trace of its existence and could no longer reach the person who had contacted him.

Realizing he had been scammed, he filed a complaint via the Ministry of Interior’s smart application.

The Ministry’s Security Media Department, in collaboration with the Federal Criminal Police, launched a nationwide campaign in mid-June to raise awareness of online fraud. The campaign includes:

The campaign urges the public to report any suspicious activity via the MOIUAE app.

In the third episode of the Ministry’s podcast, Col. Dr. Ibrahim Al Mayahi, Director of Digital Security, emphasized the growing threat of cyber fraud. He described how scammers are exploiting evolving digital tools, including AI, to deceive victims and blur the line between real and fake.

He highlighted that most cyber fraud victims have two things in common:

Al Mayahi pointed out that social media overexposure makes individuals more vulnerable to being targeted by scammers.

He stressed the importance of:

He also underlined the need for victims to report fraud immediately, noting that many don’t, despite the availability of smart reporting tools and dedicated cybercrime units across all emirates.

Important Note: The Abu Dhabi Legal Awareness Center “Masouliya” [Responsibility] reiterated that the desire for quick wealth and belief in unrealistic profit promises are among the leading reasons why people fall victim to online scams. The center warned that scammers often use well-known influencers to promote fake investment opportunities and fraudulent travel deals.