Former Fire Chief's LINE Account Hacked: Fake Messages Demand 'Lend Me $10,000'

Scam groups frequently hijack social media accounts of ordinary individuals to impersonate them and defraud their unsuspecting friends. Now, even the private accounts of public officials are being targeted. Today (21st), the fire department announced that the LINE account of former fire chief Chen Wen-long has been compromised. They released a screenshot of a conversation with a 'fake chief,' showing Chen's account directly asking someone to borrow 100,000 NTD.

The fire department confirmed that Chen Wen-long's LINE account was hacked and has already been reported to the police. 'Today, numerous firefighters, citizens, and media reporters have received loan requests from the former chief. Please do not fall victim to this scam!' they warned.

The conversation screenshot shows the fake Chen saying, 'Can you lend me 100,000 now? I need to pay a fee, and I'll repay you this Friday.' When the recipient replies, 'Send me your chief's account,' the fake Chen insists, 'I need it urgently—here’s my account. Can you transfer the money now? I promise to repay you this Friday,' followed by a bank account number.

Netizens commented, 'If a superior officer's LINE is hacked, it's the easiest to scam—after all, when the boss asks for money urgently, saying no could make life difficult later.' Others joked, 'The scam group really struck gold finding such a useful account.' Some warned, 'No matter how much you transfer, be careful—you might be flagged as a money laundering suspect.'

One user transferred just 1 NTD to the scam account to check the name, which appeared as 'Chen O-chuan,' not matching Chen Wen-long’s real name—proving it was a straw-man account. Others joked, 'Thankfully it wasn’t the police commissioner,' and 'If you lend that quickly, you’ve succeeded in life.'