A viral Facebook post saying a sailor found Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which disappeared in March, is nothing more than a scam.
The ultimate purpose of the scam is to get users to spread it via Facebook to complete bogus surveys. The surveys are how the scammers make their money.
The passenger jet, which had 239 people on board, disappeared March 8. No sign of the airliner has been located since then--even after Australian and Malaysian ships combed the southern Indian Ocean.
The scam says, “Newest Video: Malaysian Air Flight MH370 Found By Sailor Moments Ago ... Mystery is solved – sailor rewarded $5 million on spot.”
After clicking on the page, one has to share it first before an endless amount of surveys are presented to the user. There’s not a video of the airplane being located, according to Hoax-Slayer.
The scam comes amid reports that Malaysia Airlines is currently experiencing financial turbulence after the plane disappeared. Ticket sales have dropped dramatically since Flight 370 went missing.
During a meeting last month, a number of investors questioned why the company couldn’t turn a profit.
“I listen patiently year after year and the same things are said,” retired researcher Rahim Bidin said during the meeting, reported Al Jazeera.“And every year nothing happens. I’m very disappointed with the performance. If you cannot solve the problems then let someone else (try).”
After the meeting, it was reported that Malaysian state investor Khazanah Nasional is looking to take the airline company private.
UK satellite firm Inmarsat has attempted to locate the aircraft, saying that investigators have not touched on a “hotspot” area in the Indian Ocean.
The company told the BBC that the plane’s wreckage likely is located south west of the area where the main search was a few weeks ago.