Several Top Korean Actors Warn Of Ongoing Scam Involving Impersonation Of Their Managers By Individuals Causing Victims Financial Damages
Actors Byeon Woo Seok and Namgoong Min‘s respective agencies have both issued statements warning the public of ongoing scams involving impersonation of managers or staff.
935 Entertainment, home to actors Namgoong Min and Yeon Jung Hoon, recently revealed that someone has been impersonating a company staff member in an attempt to obtain financial gain.
On May 9, the agency released an official statement, “Recently, we confirmed instances where someone impersonated our staff to obtain financial profit. In particular, there are indications that someone pretended to be a manager of our artists, placing large orders at restaurants and wine companies under the pretense of staff gatherings, only to then not show up — a method known as a ‘no-show’ scam, resulting in financial damage to these businesses.”
They continued, “Our company’s staff and representatives do not, under any circumstances, request monetary transfers or purchases of goods from outside parties. If you receive a similar request, please do not send money or respond, and immediately report the incident to the police.”
935 Entertainment emphasized, “We are taking this matter very seriously and will do our best to prevent similar damages from occurring again.”
Byeon Woo Seok’s agency, VARO Entertainment, also issued a public notice on May 8 stating: “We are alerting the public that fraudulent activities are occurring in which scammers impersonate our staff to seek financial profit.”
They explained, “The scammer pretends to be a manager of one of our artists, approaches small business owners or vendors under the pretense of organizing a team dinner, and demands advance payment for specific items (mainly wine). Once the preparations are complete, they cut off all contact — a ‘no-show’ method that causes financial loss.”
VARO Entertainment added, “Our staff and representatives do not request money transfers or the purchase of goods under any circumstances. Any such request is an illegal act. Please always verify whether someone claiming to be from our company is truly affiliated with us and remain especially cautious to avoid additional damages.”
Similarly, singer Song Ga In’s agency, Pocketdol Studio, recently reported several incidents involving manager impersonation scams.
Source: (A)
