South Africa: Don't Be Scammed! Coca-Cola Is Not Giving Away Mini-Fridges and 'Special Gift Bags'

15 October 2024
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Winnie Theletsane

Don't be scammed! Coca-Cola is not giving away mini-fridges and 'special gift bags'

IN SHORT: Coca-Cola is one of the world's biggest household names. This is one of the reasons scammers have been using it and its branding for years to trick unsuspecting social media users into thinking the company is giving away special gifts. But be warned, Coca-Cola is not giving away mini-fridges or gift bags.

Some Facebook posts circulating in South Africa claim that Coca-Cola is giving away mini-fridges and "special gift bags". According to the posts, all users have to do to claim these prizes is comment with "done" before a certain date.

Coca-Cola is one of the world's largest companies, with its products available in over 200 countries. It is famous for manufacturing and distributing soft drinks and juices.

One post reads: "Coca-Cola is sending out mini Fridge and Special Gift Bags to everyone who put ( Done) Before 17th September."

It features a photo of four people standing outside what appears to be a warehouse, with various products stacked up in front of them.

The same message has been republished on different dates with different photos and deadlines for commenting.

Most of the posts have been published in public Facebook groups with thousands of members.

But is Coca-Cola running this promotion? We checked.

Scam alert

There are several signs that this promotion is too good to be true. The first is the poor writing. We expect a company as big as Coca-Cola to publish well-written content with no random capitalisation and odd spacing.

The second sign is that the message has been doing the rounds for years. We found numerous posts dating back to 2022 claiming that the company was giving away mini-fridges.

We also found it suspicious that the promotion did not appear on Coca-Cola's official websites and social media accounts.

Users who commented "done" on the posts were directed to WhatsApp or a website that required them to register. This may allow scammers to steal their personal information and use it to commit fraud.

One of the products stacked up in the photo appears to be Campbell's Chunky canned soup. But this is a product made by Campbell's, not Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola does not manufacture or distribute canned food.

In a Facebook post in 2022, Coca-Cola Peninsula Beverages said the circulating message was a scam.

This is a bottling company based in South Africa's Western Cape province. It manufactures and distributes Coca-Cola products.

"SCAM ALERT! We have been made aware of the below Coca-Cola mini Fridge giveaway currently doing the rounds on Facebook. Please be advised that this page [promoting the giveaway] is in no way associated with Coca-Cola," the company wrote.

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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