Manama: The US embassy in Qatar has warned social media users about fake accounts set up by fraudsters in the name of the ambassador to solicit money.
“We have recently been made aware of fake social media accounts claiming to be Ambassador Dana Shell Smith,” the embassy said on its website. “These accounts purporting to be Ambassador Smith were used in attempts to scam people out of money and are fake. If you are contacted by someone claiming to be the Ambassador and who asks for money, please do not respond and never promise money or favors to someone who contacts you in this manner,” the embassy warned.
The only official, verified social media accounts belonging to the Ambassador and the US embassy in Doha are listed on the embassy website, the statement said on Monday.
“Any official correspondence from the US embassy or an embassy official will be from a properly formatted US Department of State email address ending in @state.gov. The embassy is working with Qatari authorities to investigate this matter,” the embassy said. “If you have been approached by these impostors, or have other useful information on the case, please contact DohaSecurity@state.gov and also report the incident to www.ic3.gov.”
In a message on her Twitter account where she has 9,886 followers, Smith warned against bogus offers made in her name.
“To all of my tweeps: If you received a job offer from me, it is fake. I don’t have a LinkedIn account, & I will never ask you to send money,” she said.
Ambassador Smith, who served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs from 2011 to 2014 and as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Media, took up her post in Qatar in September last year. She had also worked as the State Department's Regional Arabic Language Spokesperson in Dubai.
In April, the US embassy in Beirut warned webusers against fraudsters attempting to scam them of money.
“Internet scam artists have tried to impersonate American Ambassador David Hale and the American embassy in an attempt to get Lebanese people to send them money. Don’t believe them!,” the embassy said.
“In several of these attempts, these criminals have contacted people via social media with an invitation to connect to ‘David Hale.’ When they have, they received a message saying that, for a certain sum of money, they could be named a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations. Victims were then requested to send money to an office in London. Ambassador Hale does not make UN appointments and would not solicit funds from people. In other attempts, the perpetrators have sent unsolicited emails for fees to process immigrant visa documents and work permits,” the embassy said.
Correspondence purporting to be from Ambassador Hale requesting any payment of funds or personal information is false, it added.
“We caution against providing any personal or financial information to unsolicited emails or social media contact,” the embassy said.
