Kenya: Beware of Facebook Account Impersonating Kenyan President William Ruto and Making False Promises

23 September 2022
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Dancan Bwire

IN SHORT: A Facebook page using William Ruto's name and photos is promising cash handouts in return for personal details. But the page is impersonating the Kenyan president and the offers are fake.

A Facebook account called Mtarajiwa Rais Mweshimiwa Ruto has been advertising cash giveaways to Kenyan Facebook users.

The account uses the name and photos of Kenyan president William Ruto.

One of the posts dated 19 September 2022 reads: "Hello my fellow Kenyans today I want to award fifty-five serious fans with worthy ksh sixty thousand. Simply inbox your number and name for your award."

A different post says that the cash giveaways target those in low income sectors like the bike taxi business and small-scale vegetable vendors.

The posts have been shared widely.

But is the Facebook account legit? We checked.

Signs account is fake

Facebook allows public figures such as Ruto to verify their pages on the platform. These pages carry the "blue tick" verification badge.

Ruto's official Facebook account William Samoei Ruto is verified. The account running the adverts is not.

It is highly unlikely that the president would operate two Facebook accounts and dedicate one to cash giveaways.

Besides, the posts on the fake account are full of spelling and grammar errors. This would be unlikely on a Facebook account representing Kenya's president.

The account's requests for phone numbers might be an attempt to scam people.

To help protect yourself against online scams, see Africa Check's guide to Facebook scams and how to spot them.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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