Africa: Facebook User Impersonating Dubai Prince Is Out to Scam With Fake Jobs

27 June 2023
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Muktar Balogun

IN SHORT: Africa Check has investigated many malicious schemes offering fake jobs. This is yet another one, impersonating a Dubai prince on Facebook.

A post on Facebook, dated 2 June 2023, reads: "12 Doctors and 20 nurses that are qualified and available to work here in Dubai, from these countries. send messages to get more information about how you can get your job now ..."

It then includes a row of flag emojis, including those of the US, UK, Canada, Mexico, Pakistan and Brazil.

The name of the Facebook account is Prince Sheikh Hamdan Muhammed.

Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed is the crown prince of Dubai and the second son of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai.

Dubai is the name of a city and an emirate in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a federation in the Middle East known for luxury shopping, ultramodern architecture and a successful tourism sector.

The post has been liked over 300 times. Some of the comments in the post make enquiries about the offer.

But is this job offer from a Dubai prince real?

Dubai's visa offers

Over 6 million people are reported to have visited Dubai between January and April 2023. In 2022, the city reportedly earned US$29.4 billion from international tourists alone.

The emirate has made efforts to attract talent, including doctors, from around the world. In 2021, the country extended its golden visa validity to 10 years for doctors to give them more stability.

Foreigners can live, work or study in the UAE with the golden visa, which offers long-term residents special benefits.

Fake Facebook account

The Facebook page in question is called Prince Sheikh Hamdan Muhammed. But the prince's verified Facebook account uses a different name: Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. It has a blue tick to show it is verified.

The account in question has just over 6,000 followers while the prince's official page has over 2 million followers. The official account doesn't post any job offers.

The smaller account started using the crown prince's image in March 2023. The official account has consistently updated his followers on the prince's engagements since February 2010.

These are all signs that the Prince Sheikh Hamdan Muhammed is fake and impersonating the prince.

Africa Check has exposed several Facebook accounts falsely claiming to offer job opportunities to users.

To help protect yourself against online scams, read our 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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