An Australian man lost his life savings due to a cryptocurrency scam that used doctored video clips of Elon Musk and Anthony Albanese endorsing the scheme.
Gary Meachen, 71, from Broke in Hunter Valley, New South Wales, lost $411,000 after being scammed by a Facebook video promising viewers they would get rich quick.
The clip contained doctored footage of Musk allegedly discussing a cryptocurrency scheme with a group of high-profile people.
Mr Albanese, Sunrise presenter Natalie Barr, Today presenter Karl Stefanovic, former prime minister Julia Gillard and commentator Piers Morgan were among them.
Images of the well-known political and entertainment identities were then manipulated to make it appear they were discussing the plan.
Gary Meachen lost his entire life savings after being scammed by a video showing billionaire Elon Musk discussing a cryptocurrency scheme with a group of high-profile people.
Mr. Meachen, a longtime admirer of Mr. Musk, was told he was one of the “chosen 45 who will have the opportunity to make life-changing money.”
He gave his card details to a scammer to make purchases and every time he tried to withdraw money he was persuaded to invest more.
In the end, Mr Meachen was left with nothing and now depends on his pension.
“It’s one of those things that when you think about it, it scares you because you look at the future and the future you had is gone,” he said. The project on Monday.
“It’s very hard to sleep and it keeps coming back… you just have to deal with it.”
He said the scammers who attacked him were “very convincing.”
“That’s the heartbreaking part of it, you just get torn apart by the fact that you trusted them and they just fooled you.” You feel a bit silly,’ she said.
Meachan called on social media platforms and the government to do more.
“They are depositing criminal money, so I am here to tell the government and the police that they must take some action here,” he said.
“Australians are in the spotlight.”
The 71-year-old said he and his wife would somehow find a way to get by.
“I’m pretty strong but at the end of the day I’m going to wear myself out.” We’ll find some way forward, I don’t know,” she stated.
A 71-year-old New South Wales man has revealed how he lost $411,000 in a Facebook scam involving Elon Musk and Anthony Albanese (pictured) in a get-rich-quick scheme.
‘I have never been unemployed, I have done everything well in my life and I will have to collect the pension. Why do these people target older people?
Meachan has provided the federal government with details of the elaborate scam which has been shared with New South Wales Police.
He has also contacted Cybertrace, a team of private investigators who specialize in cyber fraud and asset recovery investigations.
Australians lost $2.7 billion to scams in 2023, with more than 623,000 scam reports made that year alone, according to the ACCC.
Investment scams stole more than any other scam, accounting for $1.3 billion.
Experts believe scammers are targeting older Australians because they are less tech-savvy and more likely to have savings and retirement.
Losses for people over 65 increased 13.3 percent in 2023 to $120 million, with this age group disproportionately affected by investment plans.