The Macau Daily Times header was fraudulently used by hackers today (Friday) to attribute a fake interview to Lawrence Ho, CEO of Melco Resorts. Other outlets, namely NewsChannel and Bloomberg, also fell victim to this sham.
The fake message, in Chinese, reads, “Macau’s Monetary Authority feels outraged by [Lawrence] Ho Yau Lung’s live comments, which could threaten Macau’s entire financial system,” adding in a caption, “An interview with Ho that has shocked people.”
The Times hereby states that this is a false report and such an interview was never conducted by the newspaper with Lawrence Ho containing the alleged comments.
In a statement Friday, Melco Resorts formally declared that the reports about Lawrence Ho are “entirely fictional” and that “all information mentioned is untrue.” They urged the public to “remain vigilant and not to trust unverified information to avoid falling into fraudulent traps.” Melco sternly warned that those “who spread false information or engage in fraudulent activities” will face legal consequences.
Also Friday, the Monetary Authority of Macau (AMCM) issued a warning to the public about false statements being spread online. They urged citizens to be cautious and avoid being deceived and suffering unnecessary losses, stating they will report any illegal content to the police.
This is not the first time that the Times has been targeted by scammers. In late June, a similar attack was made using the Macau Daily Times brand identity and related to another fake interview with a Taiwanese celebrity, who allegedly denied such an interview ever took place. Our publishing company is suing the perpetrators, having filed a complaint with the Judiciary Police weeks after the incident.
The Macau Daily Times remains committed to providing truthful and verified information. We urge our readers to stay vigilant and verify the sources of their news to avoid falling victim to fraudulent activities. For official news and updates, always refer to our official webpage.
The Times cautions our readers to pay attention to any links that are based anywhere outside our official webpage (www.macaudailytimes.com.mo).
In any of these cases, the integrity of our website or social media accounts has not been violated.
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