Being a celebrity comes with exciting perks—fame, big followings, and invites to luxury events. But it also has its downsides, especially when scammers use your name and face without your permission. This is becoming a serious problem, as more South African stars are warning fans about fake social media accounts pretending to be them.
Three well-known celebrities—Connie Ferguson, Mpumi Mophatlane (Mrs Mops), and Omuhle Gela—have all taken to Instagram to speak out against scammers using their names to trick people out of money.
Actress and filmmaker Connie Ferguson recently shared her own experience. Someone pretending to be her tried to scam her—as her. She posted a series of slides on Instagram explaining the situation:
“Time for a short story… Slide 1: I get a WhatsApp message and a missed video call from a ‘Connie Ferguson’. Slide 2: The number shows as belonging to a Madonsela on Truecaller.
Slide 3: The IMPOSTER video calls, and I record with my other phone! Pardon the shoddy camera work. I wasn’t sure what to expect and I didn’t want them to see my face in case they drop off too quickly! Slide 4: After a few seconds they drop the call and texted ‘you saw me right?’
Slide 5: A live workout session during Covid that I posted on my @iconniefit page! That is the exact video used in this particular video call!”
She continued with a strong warning: “SCAMMERS ARE DOING THE MOST! Be vigilant! I DO NOT offer any investment opportunity business! Thieves are AI now to convince you that they are whoever they say they are!
Do not easily part with money you worked so hard for! If it’s too good to be true, it usually is! Have you never asked yourself why they are the ones that always have to call you and you can’t call them back? Don’t be manipulated into losing your common sense because times are hard.”
In her Instagram story, Connie also said: “A whole WOW! A scammer trying to scam me as me! Issa movie! People have lost money because of these criminals! If it sounds too good to be true best believe it is!”
Mpumi Mophatlane, also known as Mrs Mops, warned fans about a fake TikTok account pretending to be her. She posted: “Good morning guys, just a reminder that I’m not on TikTok and this is a fake account, please be careful and don’t fall victim to these scammers.”
Actress and businesswoman Omuhle Gela also spoke up after a fake TikTok account used her name to ask people for money. She wrote:
“SCAM ALERT. Please beware of the account on my first slide, it’s fake and keeps asking people for money and claiming it’s me. I AM NOW ON TIKTOK AND MY ORIGINAL PAGE IS THE ONE ON THE SECOND SLIDE AND ON MY BIO. !!!! Please help me report this scammer.”
All three women are calling on their fans to stay alert. If you get messages from a celebrity account asking for money, always double-check before doing anything. These stars want people to know they would never ask fans for money online—and if something feels off, it probably is.
