IN SHORT: There are many Facebook accounts offering loans to users. But some are fake and ask for a “registration” or “unlocking” fee before the loan is “processed”. This is a major red flag.
The Facebook account Loan Cash appears to offer Kenyan Facebook users cash loans. All it requires is for users to type the word “loan” in the comment section of its posts.
A typical post from the account reads: “Kama unataka loan sai kuanzia 5k upto 50k andika neno loan,,,”
This mix of English and Swahili translates as: “If you want a loan now from KSh5,000 to KSh50,000, write the word ‘loan’ …”
The offer has been posted on a Facebook group with thousands of members here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
But is the Facebook account and the loan offers legit? We checked.
Fake Facebook account and offers
There are a number of signs that the account and the offers are fake.
The account's initial activities from July to December 2022 appear to be those of an ordinary Facebook user, featuring photos of an individual and possibly a real name.
The account only started offering loans on 29 July 2023, posting loan offers across Facebook groups. This is a sign of a hacked Facebook account operating with a fake name.
The Facebook account tells users who comment on its posts to submit their cell phone numbers. We did so via direct message and asked for a loan.
We were called and instructed to give KSh250 as “registration fee” as the only condition for receiving the loan. This is a clear sign the account is fake and the offers are a scam.
Any account asking for a “registration” or “unlocking” fee before issuing a loan should be ignored. Genuine loan offers from legitimate financial institutions don’t require this.
For more help identifying social media scams, read our guide to Facebook scams and how to spot them.
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