IN a world full of adulthood demands, inflation, and necessities to keep us thriving, money entails to keep our lives livable.

As much as we were taught as kids that money isn’t all that, a new and different narrative comes once we enter a new chapter of our lives, where a printed currency comes to be a necessity to meet our basic living needs.  

To obtain this money, one needs to have a job, and hunting for a job (especially when you’re just starting) can be just as hard due to the years of experience requirement and other demands. Due to this cause, people remained unemployed, causing them to fall behind on their bills.  

This phenomenon is nothing new and has been happening for generations; the only difference is that through the use of social media and technology, some people have taken advantage of this scenario, turning it into profitable scams.  

What is Task Scam? 

Promising easy money to those who needed it the most, many people have fallen victim to a scam called “Task Scam.” 

These scammers would randomly send a message to his/her potential victim via messaging apps (especially in WhatsApp and Telegram), offering the victim a large sum of money just by completing simple tasks. 

Through simple tasks such as liking a post or leaving ratings and reviews for a product, scammers would come to lure people into giving in to these tasks in exchange for a large amount of money. 

After completing the task, the scammer would then claim that the victim should deposit to access more tasks or receive more payment. 

After doing the said deposit, the scammer would then vanish after receiving the money, leaving the victim with nothing.  

How to prevent it

Most of the time, detecting it can be as easy as counting to 1,2,3, but to further confirm its legitimacy, you can further do your research by searching for the company’s name and logo online. 

Always be skeptical of those who reach out to you out of nowhere, as, according to the President of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines, Serge Ortiz-Luis, no legitimate employers interact with people; they just pass through channels.    

Lastly, never give out your information to someone who just reached out to you online. As long as you have a confirmation that they’re legit, refrain from giving out personal information.