East Asian online organised crime group preying on British job seekers

Published

4 years ago

August 27, 2021

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An organised group of criminals based in East Asia have defrauded job seekers in the UK and worldwide after getting a scam app on to both the Google and Apple app stores.

Working with victims who have tried to track down their scammers, Sky News has learnt they were operating from Cambodia, the Philippines and China, despite claiming to be a legitimate business based in the UK.

Using an app called New Century, which described itself as “an e-commerce order negotiation platform with millions of members”, the scammers try to lure people to pay into cryptocurrency and British bank accounts, promising payouts – but those payouts are never delivered.

Victims locked out of accounts

One victim from outside of the UK who spoke to Sky News explained how he had fallen for the scam by responding to a public message on Facebook after losing work due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mamoon Rasheed invested more than £200 into the app but was only ever able to withdraw £30 using the cryptocurrency USDT. Although Mr Rasheed has attempted to withdraw more, the app displayed his withdrawal as “pending” for more than two weeks.

After complaining, Mr Rasheed found that he was locked out of his account, and presented with a “connection failed” message when he tried to log in again. No connection error was encountered when he attempted to register a new account, nor does this error appear when incorrect details are entered at the login screen.

Fraudsters using British banks

Sky News has observed more than a dozen business accounts registered with British banks used by the app, which regularly changes which account users are encouraged to deposit funds into.

New Century claimed to be part of British marketing agency the Ogilvy Group, but a spokesperson for Ogilvy told Sky News: “Our agency’s name has been used fraudulently and we are taking action with the relevant authorities.”

According to business registry data collected by Companies House, the businesses behind these accounts have almost all been registered in the UK this year by people who have declared their nationality to be either Chinese or Nepalese.

No contact details exist for these companies other than their registered office addresses. One of them shares this address with a Chinese restaurant in Manchester, while another gave its address as a residential building in east London.

Nobody answered the door when Sky News visited the east London address, where a neighbour described the occupants as Chinese and Pakistani men who worked in construction.

Operated from East Asia

The cryptocurrency addresses that the app has used have received the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of pounds in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the USDT token transferred over both the Ethereum and Tron blockchains.

Different recruiter accounts on Facebook have posted identical messages to groups for job seekers in major British cities, offering opportunities to job seekers to earn “extra income” and inviting victims to contact them using UK mobile numbers.

One member of the community investigating the scam was able to convince the operators of two of these accounts to visit a webpage from which they were able to identify the operators’ IP addresses, finding in both cases that they were connecting from East Asia rather than their stated locations.

Organised criminal network

Under its own brand and using these recruiter identities, New Century runs multiple WhatsApp accounts to engage with potential victims and has responded to messages at all hours of the day, indicating that there are multiple individuals involved in running the scam.

Sky News has observed recruitment taking place both on Facebook’s main platform as well as in WhatsApp groups.

A spokesperson for Facebook told Sky News: “Our teams have investigated these pages and groups brought to our attention, and have removed any that violate our guidelines.”

A number of accounts and the main New Century page on Facebook, which had more than 30,000 likes and follows, was removed after Sky News shared Ogilvy’s complaint with the social media platform.

App rebranded as scam continues

The app has been available in various forms on both the Google Play and Apple App Store for several months.

A spokesperson for Apple told Sky News the app was removed in June, though we were able to download it in late July. The company declined to comment when asked to clarify this point.

A spokesperson for Google told Sky News they had removed the app, but Sky News was still able to find a version of it on Google Play. The company added that it does not provide statements in individual cases of app removal.

The New Century website and the app have now been taken offline, but the criminals have rebranded the app as “A Platform” and relaunched it, this time claiming to an Amazon subsidiary.

Amazon has confirmed it has no connection to the business.

World

Pakistan launches ‘military operation’ against India

Published

7 hours ago

May 10, 2025

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Pakistan launches 'military operation' against India

Pakistan has launched attacks on “multiple targets” across India, according to the media wing of Pakistan’s military.

Pakistan said in a statement that retaliatory attacks are underway in response to what it called “continuous provocation” by India, which fired missiles at three air bases inside Pakistan.

“Multiple targets in this operation are being engaged all across India,” the statement from Pakistan Armed Forces (PAF) said.

Pakistan’s military said it used medium-range Fateh missiles to strike more than 25 military sites, including airbases and weapons depots in the Indian states of Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan, as well as locations in India-administered Kashmir.

Pakistan’s military posted footage on X showing missiles being fired from what appeared to be a mobile launcher.

The AP news agency also said loud explosions have been heard in India-administered Kashmir, in the disputed region’s two big cities of Srinagar and Jammu, and the garrison town of Udhampur.

Meanwhile, an Indian military source told Reuters that India has launched air operations in Pakistan, although no further details were given.

The operations mark the latest escalation in a conflict between the two nuclear-armed rivals, triggered by a deadly attack last month in India-administered Kashmir.

Most of the 26 civilians killed were Hindu Indian tourists. India blames Pakistan for backing the assault, an accusation Islamabad rejects.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called a meeting of the National Command Authority, the body which takes security decisions, including those related to the country’s nuclear arsenal.

State-run Pakistan television said three air bases were struck by India on Friday, although Pakistan insisted most of the missiles had been intercepted.

Despite the military offensive, PAF also posted a message on X in what appeared to represent an opportunity to de-escalate the situation.

“Now that a response has been given we hope the neighbour [India] will move to dialogue and diplomacy like Civilized Nations,” it said.

In recent days, both countries have launched a series of missile and drone strikes, although the scale and impact have been consistently questioned by each other.

On Wednesday, India conducted airstrikes on several sites in Pakistani territory. Pakistan said it shot down five Indian fighter jets.

On Thursday, India claimed to have repelled drone and missile attacks at military targets in more than a dozen cities and towns, including Jammu in India-administered Kashmir. Meanwhile, India claimed it struck Pakistan’s air defence systems and radars close to the city of Lahore.

The Indian army said on Friday that Pakistan fired about 300 to 400 drones, targeting military installations along the western borders – a claim strongly denied by Pakistan.

The G7 group of advanced economies, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US and Britain, urged maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan.

“We call for immediate de-escalation and encourage both countries to engage in direct dialogue towards a peaceful outcome,” a statement issued on Friday said.

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World

European leaders to meet in Ukraine for ‘coalition of the willing’ talks – and issue call to Russia

Published

7 hours ago

May 10, 2025

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European leaders to meet in Ukraine for 'coalition of the willing' talks - and issue call to Russia

Sir Keir Starmer will join other European leaders in Kyiv on Saturday for talks on the “coalition of the willing”.

The prime minister is attending the event alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently-elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

It will be the first time the leaders of the four countries will travel to Ukraine at the same time – on board a train to Kyiv – with their meeting hosted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Follow latest updates on the Ukraine war

Military officers from around 30 countries have been involved in drawing up plans for the coalition, which would provide a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire being agreed between Russia and Ukraine.

Ahead of the meeting on Saturday, Sir Keir, Mr Macron, Mr Tusk and Mr Merz released a joint statement voicing support for Ukraine and calling on Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire.

“We reiterate our backing for President Trump’s calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” they said.

“Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.”

The leaders said they were “ready to support peace talks as soon as possible”.

But they warned that they would continue to “ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine” until Moscow agrees to a lasting ceasefire.

“We are clear the bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion, and Ukraine must be able to prosper as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognised borders for generations to come,” their statement added.

“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine.”

The European leaders are set to visit the Maidan, a central square in Ukraine’s capital where flags represent those who died in the war.

They are also expected to host a virtual meeting for other leaders in the “coalition of the willing” to update them on progress towards a peacekeeping force.

This force “would help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces after any peace deal and strengthen confidence in any future peace”, according to Number 10.

World

Ten explosions near international airport in India-administered part of Kashmir, officials say

Published

13 hours ago

May 9, 2025

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Ten explosions have been heard near Srinagar International Airport in India-administered parts of Kashmir, officials have told Reuters news agency.

The blasts followed blackouts caused by multiple projectiles, which were seen in the sky above the city of Jammu earlier on Friday.

Explosions were also heard in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, in the neighbouring Punjab state, according to Reuters.

An Indian military official told the agency that “drones have been sighted” and “they are being engaged”.

It comes as tensions between India and Pakistan across the line of control around the region of Kashmir have boiled over this week, leading to fears of a wider conflict.

On Wednesday morning, India carried out missile strikes in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered parts of the disputed region.

The retaliation came weeks after 26 people, mainly Indian tourists, were shot dead by gunmen in an India-administered part of Kashmir last month.

The government in India said it hit nine “terrorist infrastructure” sites, while Pakistan said it was not involved in the April attack and the sites were not militant bases.

Around 48 people have been killed since Wednesday, according to casualty estimates on both sides – which have not been independently verified.

India also suspended its top cricket tournament, the Indian Premier League, as a result of rising tensions, while the Pakistan Super League moved the remainder of its season to the United Arab Emirates.

Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a conference on Friday that the US is in constant contact with both India and Pakistan.