A young Nigerian woman has taken to social media to share her frustration after falling victim to an online scam by a man who falsely promised to upgrade her iPhone XR.
The incident, which has since gone viral, was brought to public attention by the user @_cheemio on the platform X (formerly Twitter). According to her account, she had previously posted a picture of her iPhone XR online. Shortly afterward, a man messaged her, claiming he was impressed by her post and offering to gift her a newer iPhone model.
The supposed benefactor, however, asked her to pay ₦8,000 as a delivery fee for the phone a request she agreed to, thinking it was a fair arrangement. But after transferring the money, she received no delivery confirmation. Instead, the man became hostile when she asked for updates and eventually blocked her on all platforms.
In her words:
“Lol, someone scammed me of my last card, and that was for a new inhaler. He pretended to send me a new phone after my XR tweet, and I sent money for the delivery fee ’cause I felt it was fair to pay for it. When it didn’t drop, I asked, and he got angry and blocked me.”
“I’m not even angry. It’s just so funny ’cause it’s 8k that you went that far for? Is that how it is?”
The woman also clarified that the money she lost had been set aside to purchase a much-needed inhaler for her health condition, making the scam even more heartbreaking.
Her story has since sparked a flurry of reactions from users online, many expressing sympathy while also noting that the scam format she fell for has been around for years. Some criticized the scammer's tactics, while others urged her to be more cautious moving forward.
Here are some of the reactions from X users:
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@mayy_rhee: “Omooo this is a known scam actually. Sorry you had to go through this.”
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@_iamkhenie: “This is actually an old format. You only fell for it because people pay for delivery fee if they’re to be gifted an item on Twitter. Sorry about that.”
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@LyndaJames4: “You were supposed to ask him to send the inhaler, then you pay the delivery guy.”
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@chididestiny0: “Why you let am scam you 🤦🏽♂️ You are smarter than this.”
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@dunniszn_: “Omo I thought people were familiar with this scam format already. Sorry.”
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@Talk2meeh: “Hope this didn’t happen recently because this format don cast since 2015.”
Many users have also taken this opportunity to caution others against sending money online to strangers, especially in exchange for promised gifts. Online fraud continues to be a widespread issue in Nigeria, and digital literacy advocates are urging the public to remain vigilant.
As scams evolve and resurface with new faces, this incident serves as a reminder that skepticism and verification should always come before trust in the digital space.
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