Police slow to act as scammers exploit farmer's identity for fake online persimmon sales

A persimmon farmer in Sangju, North Gyeongsang, has become the unwitting face of a viral scam in China, after fraudsters stole their photos and business registration to promote fake dried persimmon sales on major social media platforms, shown in this image. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

 
A persimmon farmer in Sangju, North Gyeongsang, has become the unwitting face of a viral scam in China after fraudsters stole their photos and business registration information to promote fake dried persimmon sales on major social media platforms.
 
According to JTBC’s news program “Crime Chief” (2014-) on Tuesday, the farmer recently began receiving phone calls complaining about undelivered persimmons.
 

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Because persimmons are not currently in season, the farmer initially dismissed the calls as a misunderstanding. But the number of calls grew into the dozens, with callers saying they had placed orders after watching promotional videos on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.
 
Suspicious, the farmer searched online and discovered an unfamiliar e-commerce site using photos of their farm.
 
The scammers had used the business registration certificate and images from the farmer’s official sales website in their fraudulent promotional materials — including pictures of the farmer’s parents.
 
“They just copied everything — the business registration, photos of our farm — from our sales site,” the farmer said. “Even certificates had our farm’s name and my parents’ pictures on them.”
 
The fraudulent video advertisements featured people in traditional Chinese attire, packaging labeled with Chinese characters and a website registered to Zhongshan, China. Based on these clues, the farmer suspects the scam was orchestrated by a Chinese fraud ring.
 
The ad falsely claimed that the site had secured “exclusive distribution rights from a Sangju orchard” and was running a special promotion — buy one box of 70 dried persimmons, get one free — to mark the “launch” of its online sales.
 
The promotional videos have racked up more than 13 million views across YouTube, TikTok and other platforms.
 
“I can’t even peel persimmons properly because my phone keeps ringing,” the farmer said, adding that they receive up to 40 calls a day. “I’m speaking out to prevent further damage.”
 
Despite reporting the fraud multiple times to both the police and platform operators, no action has been taken to remove the videos.
 
A police official said, “A team has not yet been assigned to the case,” and added that, unlike voice phishing cases, this incident was not deemed “urgent” enough for immediate action.


This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY SHIN HYE-YEON [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]