Oprah Winfrey posted a video message to her authentic Twitter and Instagram on Thursday in which she notified followers that scammers using decoy Oprah Instagram accounts have been soliciting money and personal information from fans.
Winfrey says-slash-sings in the video:
“Hi, everybody, I just wanted you to know that somebody out there is trying to scam you using my name and my avatar on social media, asking for money if you sign up for an OWN account on Instagram. It’s a fraud, it’s a fraud, it’s a fraud. Don’t believe it. Don’t give up any of your bank accounts or personal information to anybody posing as me, or anyone else for that matter. And, have a Merry Christmas.”
The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) issued a similar warning on its Instagram.
First for Women reported the scams on Wednesday. It appears that the fake Oprah accounts tend to announce Christmas giveaways of $5,000 to the first 100,000 people to follow OWN.
So don’t fall for it, and keep your money!