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Paid tasks on Telegram or WhatsApp: real or a scam?

The FTC’s advice is to ignore generic and unexpected texts, WhatsApp or Telegram messages about jobs. Police in Singapore describe the same offers in group chats on both apps.

✓ Checked 9 Nov 2026 · Next check 5 Feb 2027
A man on a sofa looking at his phone

No honest company will pay you to give a positive rating or like things online, says the FTC. On Telegram and WhatsApp the offer comes as a message or a group chat you were added to, and the deposits come later.

How it works, step by step

  1. The messageSingapore police say victims get unsolicited WhatsApp or Telegram messages, or are added to group chats, with a job offer or a ‘giveaway’ prize.
  2. Easy tasksThe police list following accounts on TikTok or Instagram, liking YouTube videos and liking songs on Spotify. The FBI adds rating restaurants and ‘optimizing’ a service by clicking a button over and over.
  3. Small pay firstVictims receive a small commission at first. The FTC says it is usually $5 to $20, paid to gain your trust.
  4. Then you pay inSingapore police say victims then transfer larger and larger sums to bank accounts or crypto wallets the scammers give them.
  5. Money you cannot take outThe FBI says a fake interface shows you earning money, but none of it is available to cash out.

How big it is

All of 2023
5,000
First half of 2024
20,000 reports

Approximate task scam reports to the US FTC. The FTC says most fraud goes unreported.

Singapore police counted at least 215 reported cases of task, online business and survey job scams between October and late November 2025, and at least 180 victims of the social media task version in December 2023.

Warning signs

SignWho says so
A job offer from a stranger in a message or a group chatThe FTC and Singapore police
Pay for likes or ratingsThe FTC: no honest company will do that
Crypto payments to your ‘employer’The FBI lists it as a red flag
A job that asks for no referencesThe FBI lists it as a red flag
A deposit to finish a task or to withdrawThe FTC and Singapore police
“Never pay anyone to get paid, or to get a job. That’s a sure sign of a scam.”US Federal Trade Commission

What to do

  • Do not reply, and leave any group chat you were added to.
  • Singapore police ask people to report the chat with WhatsApp’s and Telegram’s own reporting tools.
  • On WhatsApp, the police advise turning on the privacy setting that stops unknown users adding you to groups.
  • If you have paid, stop: the next deposit will not unlock the balance. Report it to your country’s consumer or fraud agency.

What Telegram itself says

  1. Report it in the appTelegram says every Telegram app has a ‘Report’ button for flagging illegal content to its moderators, and it gives abuse@telegram.org as its takedown address.
  2. Look for the labelTelegram says accounts, bots and groups that try to defraud users may be marked FAKE or SCAM on their public profile. No label does not mean an account is safe.
  3. Keep your codesTelegram warns never to give a bot your passwords, Telegram codes or bank account numbers, even if it asks nicely.

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Sources