A fake website using the names of BizNews, Sasol, and billionaires Warren Buffett and George Soros is luring investors with promises of impossible returns.
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By Chris Steyn
A fake website using the names of BizNews, Sasol, and billionaires Warren Buffett and George Soros is luring investors with promises of impossible returns.
This is reminiscent of recent deep fake ads featuring billionaires Elon Musk, Johann Rupert and Nicky Oppenheimer.
Scores of investors who clicked on the ads have reported losses totalling millions.
On the fake website, the BizNews website was cloned to publish a fake story by the “Editor”.
The fake story uses a “Sasol” graphic for illustrations.
The “story” is headlined: ”Never become dependent on a single source of income. Invest to create a second source.” – by Warren Buffett”
It reads: We have been working on this project for a long time and have invested heavily to provide citizens with an easy and affordable way to trade energy, natural resources and shares, including the ability to trade Sasol shares, which our brokers predict that will grow tremendously. plus you don’t need to have any trading experience or knowledge in this area, you will be provided with a personal Financial expert that will guide you through the process.
“With the support of South Africa’s & UK’s most experienced Financial Experts, you can start passively earning from R120 000 per month…
“This opportunity has been created for one purpose only – to give citizens financial independence and investment security. By investing R4 900, you will be able to use one of the best trading platforms, with a personal guidance from a top Expert who will assist you throughout the entire process.
“As proof, we have also received several letters from our citizens who have already started trading on a licensed trading platform.”
These “testimonials” included claims of impossi high returns: “I invested R4 900 and with the help of my personal assistant I made R1 000 000 in a few months’; and “After investing R4 900 in just a short time, our personal manager helped us reach a monthly income of R350 000”.
When a potential investor clicks on the “Go to the site to register” button, they are taken to a page headlined: “The investment project of Sasol Limited supported by the Ministry of of Economic Development opens access to investment to all South Africans”.
That page features a piece purported to have been contributed by billionaire George Soros. It reads:
“George Soros
Wall Street’s top trader. $6.7 billion fortune
“Sasol is now available for micro-investments. This means that everyone in South Africa now has the right to trade on the company’s price.
“The fact is that there is currently a demand for gas and oil on the world market. Due to the crisis caused by the war in Ukraine and the attacks of the Yemeni Hussites on oil tankers, the prices of oil products have risen sharply. Due to that our company has decided to focus on oil and gas profitable scalping. To achieve this goal, we decided to attract South African citizens to invest with our brokers. This is favourable for our company and for all investors.
“As the prices of petroleum products change rapidly, each investment in Sasol stock has the potential of returns an average of between R18,000 and R210,000 per month”
- BizNews has alerted Sasol to the scam.
- BizNews has also reported the scam to the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA Complaint/Enquiry Ref No: 135685)
- This is the fake: https://sasolarsystems.com/
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