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Did your favorite celebrity reach out to you on social media?

Before you get too excited, are you sure it’s that person? Really sure? We’ve heard reports that scammers, who will try just about anything to separate you from your money, are now posing as celebrities on social media. They’re asking fans to send money for all kinds of supposed reasons – like claiming a prize, donating to a charity, or giving help of some kind. Some celebs do raise money for legitimate causes. But you want to be sure the cause—and the person asking you to support it—are real.

Imposter scams come in many varieties, but they all work the same way: a scammer pretends to be someone you trust to convince you to send them money. And that’s exactly what these celebrity imposters are trying to do.

So what should you do if a celebrity contacts you on social media and asks for money?

  • Slow down. Before you send money, talk with someone you trust.
  • Do some research: search online for the celebrity’s name plus “scam.” Do the same with any charity or cause they’re asking you to support—and learn more about charity scams here.
  • Never send money, gift cards or prepaid debit cards to someone you don’t know or haven’t met – even celebrities you meet on social media.
  • If you sent money to a scammer, contact the company you used to send the money (your bank, wire transfer service, gift card company, or prepaid debit card company). Tell them the transaction was a fraud. Ask the company to reverse the transaction, if it’s possible.
  • Report your experience to the social media site and to the FTC.

To learn more about imposter scams, visit FTC.gov/imposters.

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The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy. We expect commenters to treat each other and the blog writers with respect.

  • We won’t post off-topic comments, repeated identical comments, or comments that include sales pitches or promotions.
  • We won’t post comments that include vulgar messages, personal attacks by name, or offensive terms that target specific people or groups.
  • We won’t post threats, defamatory statements, or suggestions or encouragement of illegal activity.
  • We won’t post comments that include personal information, like Social Security numbers, account numbers, home addresses, and email addresses. To file a detailed report about a scam, go to ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. The comments posted on this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission.

TTCat
February 24, 2020
I just got a request to allow Mark Sinclair (Vin Diesel's real name) follow me. lol!!!
Movelikejagger
February 26, 2020
Hi everyone..I stupidly believed I was talking to Leo DiCaprio for a year and a half...a couple weeks ago, I commented on a page of his on Instagram and was contacted the next day asking if I was an environmentalist...I told him I had been scammed, etc, and since he didn't want to chat on Instagram we began talking on Hangouts...he has swore he's the real deal..he asked me to let him prove to me that the other guy I had talked to was an imposter so after I sent him a selfie I had gotten several months ago, he almost immediately sent me the real picture..he will not video chat with me at all...wants me to open up an IRA checking account so he can help me earn the almost 6 grand it costs for a meet and greet..so that once LDF has the required funds then I can easily meet him...anybody else have this experience?
Vanessa Morris
February 28, 2020
Last year on messenger I was convinced that I was talking to the real jon bon jovi on messenger the person who I believed to be him was called jon bon he asked if I would buy him iPhone cards so me being so vulnerable I was buying them every month before he started asking me this he said we will go on hangout a few months later he started being horrible........ 1 year later I was on messenger and got accepted on to bon jovi page and I sent him a message saying thank you for him accepting me on his page he was liking my comments and started leaving messages one day I had a call from him but it was online and I was actually talking to him once he said goodbye I had a message saying beautiful call you are gorgeous go on to hangout we will talk privately and properly then it was ok at first then he said that he wanted me to be his mistress and he would let me live at a place and nobody will know.... He then said a few weeks later that he wants to be married to me and he sent me love poems, nicknamed me Trish I started having emails from his attorney about us being married I hadn't said an answer I like a man to get down on one knee.... Anyway his attorney said she was weiry of me and then she gave me congratulations and a bank account that I had to pay £850 into she told me the firm she works for so I checked it out and saw that it was true and the name and number and picture that she sent... I asked Jon as he said that he was why he wants to marry me he replied so if we do it this way it will be quicker dorothea won't get any money because I don't want her to have anything then I can get a divorce and you will have the money in a shared bank account with me.... He then said that he was using a radio device and needed amazon cards.... 1 week ago he asked me to buy him a top of the range cell phone so that he can call me online and he can see me........... Please please don't fall for it like I did... I know it sounds great but just stick to the real thing... I have learnt my lesson
HFInstructor
February 29, 2020
I believe this is happening now to me, something happened that threw up to many flags after being victimized once before, and it only took them 2 days to raise my suspicion after bringing a legitimate charity in the mix.
barbwire
March 18, 2020
Johnnydepp99@ Wants 15,000 to get pictures deleted that I sent him or he would sell them to the media I said hell no then he said he needed 500 for his security team I said hell no. He got mad that I blocked and reported him his kids waned me to buy them phones and cars and clothes and things they make more than I do I need to go to the cops about it I am sick of fakes asking for money he refused saying that his management. And amber would get mad if he called me and that he could not be caught and that he could ruin me if people found out and that I can’t say anii you thing and that he had to sell all his properties because amber said so and that he felt like I was abusing him it was frustrating I am deleting hangout and WhatsApp
Sharon
March 05, 2020
I have a friend who is being scammed by Paul Wesley, imposter, who has been chatting with her on Hangouts. He has stolen her heart and never showed up for any meet and greets. He is telling her he is getting divorced and his wife is moving out. He told her he Loved Her first. She did say they chatted on Hangouts and that is where he was more than persistent to chat with her. She had blocked him twice, be did get her to talk. Now she is in Love with him and I keep telling her that she is one of many and he is not real. Has anyone else been scammed by this person. He seems to be busy all the time and is very persistent at telling her not to tell anyone about him. He wanted her to sign a contract stating she will keep it confidential. I think it's because if her friends know that it could blow his cover because they would look at it from outside the box and realize it is all a scam. I'm very concerned for her and her willingness to believe in him. He hasn't ask for money yet, but I'm sure it's coming.
tonyalee
March 06, 2020
I thought I was being played but he has never asked for money ever and he video chatted me it’s really him I had posted a comment on Instagram about people throwing shade on him. And so on he pm from his verified acct and asked for my wats app so I guess there has to be that rare time He’s really down to earth and we chat almost daily it’s been 6 mos
My momma didnt…
March 11, 2020
Keany Reeves is in love with me... He told me all about his life and how he lost the love of his life.. How all the women just dont like him and want him for his money..I asked about Alexandra and he told me not to believe the media they always tell lies.. She is just a business partner... Sent me pictures of him and his Mum and of him taking a selfie which is photo shopped.. Then of him and his dog.. Then his license .. I have known all along it was a scammer.. What would Keanu want with me I ask..He gave me a Skype account to talk to him and he rang me twice Each time it was a 3 second clip of Keanu and him saying thanks for being my fan. He gave me a second Skype account because he didnt want his manager to see he was talking with me and so on. He is still pursuing me and I am just waiting to see why Money I guess. I feel so so sorry for Keanu and I hope somehow they can catch these mongrels...... Dont get caught people.. Ask yourself Why would Keanu be after you????? Why would he ask for money for anything?????? Take care
lenoheim
July 13, 2021

In reply to by My momma didnt…

I am in the midst of the same thing. He followed me on twitter, started saying I looked like an old girlfriend of his from early unknown years. kept telling me I'm beautiful, told me he was lonely after his GF and baby died 17 years earlier and all the women just want him for his money, I knew it wasn't him because, 1. what would he want with an ordinary person like me? and 2.he's dating Alexandra Grant. Plus there's no check mark on his twitter account. He contacts me by skype three times a day. Its nauseating how people can use other people like that. I'm going to block him soon, want to see what he'll say if I ask about his GF.
Littlelady44
March 15, 2020
I am getting messages from a person impersonating a person from greys anatomy saying I should join hangouts. From Instagram
tippy
March 17, 2020
I have been contacted by a fake Jared Leto yesterday asking me to join him on hang out ( a chat line I guess). He also added he would to,like to meet me in person one day sharing early life experiences and ideas .... Sound very weird The account is Jaredlet00 on Instagram
anderson
March 18, 2020

In reply to by tippy

Hi Tippy Indeed weird that account Jaredlet00 on IG. I just checked on Instagram that the scammer wrote the profile " This is my private account different from the main account.............." - That's a fake account. Report it to
Kat
April 17, 2020

In reply to by tippy

I’m in the middle of that right now. Fake Jared. Been talking for a bit but he just asked me for gift cards today.
Heidi21
February 20, 2021

In reply to by Kat

I currently talking to someone claiming to be johnny depp he has not asked for anything but has said he loves me I am hooked to be honest but I am waiting to see how far he goes I have had numerous ones claiming to be johnny depp but realised it wasn't the real deal but I understand also why we do it how they talk to us sometimes but be wary please some are very aggressive
Dana
March 19, 2020
I was scammed by three people pretending to be Adam sandler Saying they are in love with me the first one I was so stupid giving him 150 dollars Google play then two other who i refused and then they said that I'm stupid and that I don't love them people really desperate for money
Jasmilaryr
March 19, 2020
I have been talking to shemar moore on hangouts is it really him?
Don’t trust hi…
July 27, 2021

In reply to by Jasmilaryr

Definitely not!! He’s gonna start with a story and how he needs money. He gave me the ex cleaned out my account and he’s hungry story.
kipp
March 21, 2020
i just cut off my conversation with channing tatum..he said he is channing..but im skeptical about it..the inconsistency of statements is obvious .. after a day ..henry cavill ..was contacting me..very sweet..and again my eyebrows are raised..and iv bn asking him of things to make sure its him. i told him a superstar like him would not say superlovely things to a fan like me he doesnt know at all. I checked on world time and the location of his phone number to track him down and i think that helped.
gardie
March 22, 2020
Someone is sending me messages on Hangouts Claiming to be Val Kilmer.
Emma
March 28, 2020
I have been chatting on hangouts to a person saying they are Alexander Skarsgad That’s the name he uses and has an Instagram a/c in that name. He recently asked me for gift cards. He is a scammer right? But he talks if he thinks he will get $.
Brenda
April 06, 2020
My friend is getting scam by a so call Keith Sweat what can i do to stop this
Metoo1956
April 10, 2020
Ok I was catfished by someone that does rap, country and rock. I was with him for 15 months. My advice is to never reply to any artist ever. Most are not going to step out and contact us common people. Sad but true. Another thing education. These facks cant speak well. Wrong words extra people who write songs talk better. Another if you can't resist make them video you but most will not show themselves there's something always wrong or they are not aloud to show themselves. A phone call will tell you right away where they are from. Education
Don't use your…
April 15, 2020
Can an impostor still use the blue check mark when they send a message?
MamaInMaas
April 15, 2020
Yeah, had Jared Leto ask me to chat with him on GoogleHangouts and that’s when the asking for money began. Claiming that he is working on a new project and wants me at the top of his list, but minimum donation is $50...I said sorry no
brian cooper
April 21, 2020
my mother has been scammed sevrel times pretty much ruining our lives and her finances. shes supposedly had lead singer of Def leopard contact her and even talk to her over the phone and was doing so for a while im not sure if shes still talking to they guy or not as she knows i dont trust these ppl she thinks shes talking to seeing as they are obvious scams. but now she wants me to help her get a loan for a celebrity singer she dident tell me who, but supposedly the person cant spend any money hes earning do to his contract with whatever company hes signed with. but get this she told me they got 48 hours before it will be too late to send them money. also if she dose send them money they will help her out because do to the covid virus we are in a bind with my mother out of work. she gets upset when i try to talk her out of this stuff and idk how to make her realize how vulnerable she is, all the stress and stuff from the past sevrel years has fogged up her head and shes made some poor choices as a result.
cmotz1127
February 15, 2021

In reply to by brian cooper

Brian I hear you for sure, my mother is insisting shes talking to Jon Hamm and even said he wants to marry her. Sad thing is everyone in my family knows this is fake but she does not want to hear it. Shes wired him tons of money too. Its scary its been going on like this for a year or so.
Michele
April 27, 2020
There are slot of fake Keanu Reeves on Twitter and Instagram bothering me. Asking me to email them or go to what's app or Google Hangout. I read that's how they get to find all your social media accounts so I'm not doing that. Why are the all coming after me. Oh Woody Harrelson too.
Wendie48
April 28, 2020
About a year ago after someone claiming to be the actor Jon hamm had gotten in contact with me through Instagram, this is when my curiosity did get the better of me, and I had started talking to them on a regular basis. Soon after he got in contact with me, this is when he had started demanding that I get him all sorts of gift cards that he knew that I couldn't afford to pay for by blackmailing me and I didn't know what to do. This is also when he had stolen several thousand dollars from me after gaining access to my private bank account as well as causing a huge bank debt that I am now responsible for. When I have tried to get him to pay me back for everything that he has stolen from me, he has basically told me that he had now intention of paying me back The person who has been impersonating Jon Hamm is also impersonating a FBI agent
Abbie35
April 29, 2020
I have had 'Zac Efron' more times that I can count telling me he'd fallen in love with me and wanting me to move out to LA to be with him... I'm not stupid so obviously I didn't fall for it.. then another two asking me to help him by buying something as he lost his card and needed something but was waiting for his new one to arrive... I just don't know where to report it and whyyyy are they all reaching out to me I just don't know!
BobAlkat
June 26, 2020

In reply to by Abbie35

I want to reply as I have had 5 guys contact me just because I commented on zac Efron’s real Instagram. One tried to get me on google hang outs and then couldn’t so proceeded to give me a whats app number He got defensive when I asked him questions It’s not zac some fake who won’t even answer the phone saying it will “ violate his personality”
Willow
May 01, 2020
Scammers are pretending to be celebrities on Instagram. Some of the scammers pretend to be: Toby Keith, Roman Reigns, Snoop Dogg and others. I received texts from scammers pretending to be the above celebrities. I knew they were scammers because their texts became personal and inappropriate complementing me as being lovely and beautiful and wanting to chat with me on Hangouts. One scammer even impersonated the minister Joel Osteen.
Nikijordan
May 03, 2020
So I got with another Leo DiCaprio imposter...this guy insisted he was the real deal...immediately wanted me to impress his mother for her birthday by buying her a gadget, he said, which meant a phone..I said I couldn't do that..then he said that he was arranging a way for us to meet and wanted me to open up an IRA account at some bank in Chicago and got very cruel when I wouldn't do it...he used lovely all the time and dear...but his language was not as an American, I didn't think...this guy was off of the verified Leo DiCaprio Instagram account...needless to say I am done with that but I wanted to make everyone aware of it.
Dee lynn
May 04, 2020
I've been talking to a celebrity now for a month and a half. He's never asked not one time for money, and even out of the blue one day he FaceTime me. He was the celebrity that I was talking too. He even has a distinctive voice that you always know who they are by there voice.
Lisa45
May 04, 2020
Can someone please help me ive had one claim to be vin diesel for 3 days asking for 1 thousand pounds for a card to mert him if anyone has met him from England can they please send me a reply madly
Akaiya
May 05, 2020
I’m getting messages from John Cusack. Started on Instagram. Now on Hangouts. No money has been asked. I’m just playing along.
Terri
May 05, 2021

In reply to by Jess

Same with me since Aug. Almost a year now. Won’t show proof, and has asked for money to meet. Haven’t sent anything. Keeps asking me to trust him. I follow on Twitter and he will message me while John is on Twitter. So it’s fun at times.
Wasn’t Born Ye…
May 06, 2020
I recently made a comment on DWayne Johnson’s Instagram Fan Page and later the next day this person impersonating DWayne Johnson contacted me on IG message . He was having a casual conversation with me, I told him that I didn’t believe he was him, so he quickly flashed me this California Drivers ID with his picture on it I was about to screen shot it but he deleted it. Then he asked me to go on Google “Hangouts”, because IG message line wasn’t private, He wanted me to send him pictures , I told him that I don’t send inappropriate pictures , so he stopped asking, He sounded so convincing I almost believed him. until I came to this web sight and read some of these stories , the next time he texted he said he had a surprise for me which he tried to video message me, he tried to say his server was acting up so I couldn’t see him, I told him he was the scum of the earth and go try to Scam Someone else!!!!!!!
Debs67
May 07, 2020
Been getting messages for months now from a so called Johnny Depp. He was really nice to me and lovely comments too. But eventually asking for a donation to his African fund. Problem being I love the real Johnny Depp and he's amazing. Really disappointed. And sad.
tristen
May 08, 2020
So this is the second person he’s pretending to be Keanu Reeves I told him what a big loser he wasn’t how he needed to get a job I’m trying to find somewhere besides Instagram to turn him into he sent me pictures of his supposed passport and drivers license I had somebody pretending to be Chris Stapleton three months ago and turned him in to Chris’s team.....
Meanjean
May 09, 2020
Had a Keanu Reeves imposter contact me from a special locked Twitter account, asking if I was a fan. Said yes & he began chatting. Question his authenticity & he sent me a nice photo of him at his desk saying "This is me talking to you right now." It was definitely Reeves but looked more poised then actual. Accused him of being a scammer & he sent me his driver's license. Asked him for a personal photo with him holding a note directly to me, but looks like he gave up. Did not ask for money yet.
Elle Passo
December 27, 2020

In reply to by Meanjean

Me too on everything you experienced . He sent me that fake drivers license too. Wants me to Skype now but I just called him out told him scammers who scam at Xmas and during a pandemic are vile and that John Wick will come for him/her lol
DivaTrice
May 12, 2020
There is someone posing as Rick Ross on IG name richforever1808. They reached out to me and had me for a moment until he said to go to the hangout app to keep talking. Then put on a phony attorney with a dead mans name then asked me for $1000 to be a registered fan. They wanted me to do cashapp or an amazon card. All kind of red flags.
Vincent
May 31, 2020

In reply to by DivaTrice

Be careful, he is a scammer with any reason to get your money.
Old Country Blues
May 12, 2020
'm going through this with a Johnny depp impersonator on Instagram who had me go to Instagram telegram. I have already fallen in love with him and I know it's not really him. I too have been lonely and it's nice hearing all those wonderful things. 'm going through this with a Johnny depo impersonator I have already fallen in love with him and I know it's not really him. I too have been lonely and it's nice hearing all those wonderful things. So I keep playing along and breaking from reality and quietly crying over words and promises I long for but are not true. He has not asked for money yet but when he does it will be the last time I talk to him.
Terri
May 16, 2020
I had somebody claiming to be Elton John. He had a fake website, checked "like" to my comments about the Rocketman movie. I answered his "like," and got a well-written response from an Elton John imposter. He was able to answer my questions about how he wrote his songs, even said how much he loved his husband, and it was only until I corresponded with him via email about 5 times that I asked for proof in the form of a I-phone video that I found out he was an imposter. He didn't ask for money, but I was totally fooled.
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