Public awareness of the need to guard against investment fraud has grown, but so has the number of cases
The police revealed that scammers are now using online rental platforms as a new channel to connect with potential victims by posing as wealthy flat hunters. Property owners seeking tenants should take note and exercise caution. A scam known as “pig butchering”, in which fraudsters gain the confidence of victims before persuading them to pump money into fake investments, is on the rise. There were 199 cases of this kind in the first six months of 2025.
The biggest case involved a 52-year-old insurance company worker who lost HK$31 million to a scammer posing as an affluent potential tenant for her flat.
Your personal data will be processed and information from your device (cookies, unique identifiers, and other device data) may be stored by, accessed by and shared with 88 TCF vendor(s) and 20 ad partner(s), or used specifically by this site or app.
Some vendors may process your personal data on the basis of legitimate interest, which you can object to by managing your options below. Look for a link at the bottom of this page or in the site menu to manage or withdraw consent in privacy and cookie settings.
