Confirmed to be staged! One streamer detained, account suspended!

Anti-fraud efforts are drawing a great deal of attention. For the sake of views, some people have targeted anti-fraud content, fabricating and filming fake videos. Not long ago, several videos were widely reposted online, quickly gaining momentum. In the videos, a host claimed that while he was traveling in the Yunnan border area, he was tricked and taken abroad, and was then rescued back to China by local police. Many netizens expressed sympathy for the host’s misfortune, but it turned out to be staged purely to gain views.

These videos were posted by a man with the online nickname “Zhonglin” on a short-video platform. His real name is Xu Mou. Since February 26 of this year, he has gradually posted multiple videos and gone live on the platform, claiming that because he had a dispute with someone in Guiyang, he went to Yunnan’s border area to travel and clear his mind. However, he said that he was deceived by a cross-border telecom fraud group and taken abroad, and was then rescued by local police; the related content sparked widespread attention online.

Officer Feng Gongliang, Cybersecurity Detachment, Nanning? (Nanming) Branch, Guiyang Public Security Bureau:

The series of videos he made are relatively consistent in terms of logic, and the credibility is very high from our perspective. Generally, it is difficult for ordinary people to tell the difference.

Team Leader Jiang Junfeng, Cybersecurity Detachment, Nanming Branch, Guiyang Public Security Bureau:

After the general public saw his videos, they would certainly have extremely high concern for his personal safety. We have also received a large number of online reports and we need to investigate this matter.

After receiving the reports, Nanming Public Security authorities immediately launched a verification process, using multiple approaches including traceability via movement trajectories, cross-checking immigration and exit/entry records, and on-site visits and investigations, to comprehensively verify the truth of the incident.

Team Leader Jiang Junfeng, Cybersecurity Detachment, Nanming Branch, Guiyang Public Security Bureau:

We also contacted the Yunnan police. After verification by police in both places that lasted about a week, they finally figured out the matter.

The result of the investigation was that the so-called incident of being tricked abroad was completely fabricated by Xu Mou himself. After the investigation, the police found that since February this year, the online influencer Xu Mou, who has 170,000 followers, targeted the anti-fraud space, which has high attention online. He intentionally fabricated and filmed fake short videos, created an atmosphere of tension, amplified the anxiety of being lured abroad, and attracted a large number of netizens who did not know the truth to watch.

Officer Feng Gongliang, Cybersecurity Detachment, Nanming Branch, Guiyang Public Security Bureau:

Because now there is too much homogeneity online, he found that the efforts to grow followers through his daily livestreaming and video shooting were not as strong as before. He then thought that, by using the identity of an “anti-fraud host,” he would first invent a persona of someone who had returned after being rescued from abroad, and use it to produce content in the “anti-fraud host” area. That way, he could attract more followers to pay attention to him.

Police said that Xu Mou attempted to establish the persona of an “anti-fraud host” based on fabricated experiences in order to achieve rapid follower growth. He exploited the public’s goodwill, damaged the online ecosystem, encouraged a culture of making up stories for profit, and seriously disrupted online communication order. He also seized public resources and police manpower that genuinely need to urgently help members of the public, causing a harmful social impact.

Team Leader Jiang Junfeng, Cybersecurity Detachment, Nanming Branch, Guiyang Public Security Bureau:

By using a fake script to draw the attention of ordinary people, while squeezing out public resources, ordinary people may also hold misconceptions about the state of our society.

At present, Xu Mou has been administratively detained for 5 days by the Nanming Branch of the Guiyang Public Security Bureau in accordance with the law for fabricating facts and disrupting public order. The online account he used to publish the fake videos has been shut down by the platform in accordance with the law, and all related noncompliant content has been removed.

Police remind: Anti-fraud publicity is related to the protection of people’s property and the stability of society; there is no room for any kind of false hype or fabrication intended to attract attention. Online creators should assume corresponding social responsibility, uphold the bottom line of law and morality, earn attention through high-quality, positive content, and never take risks just to chase views or cross legal red lines.

Massive news, precise interpretation—available in the Sina Finance App