January 9, 2019
CMR) There is a fake LinkedIn account purporting to be the Governor of the Cayman Islands that has amassed over 350 professional connections.
Cayman Marl Road received a tip to investigate the validity of the account recently. After checking with several high level government sources we have confirmed that the LinkedIn account is indeed fake.
The account already has 364 connections. There is a second account that has over 500 connections that appears to be the official page for the Governor of the Cayman Islands. A telltale sign is the first account is grammatically incorrect when it states “Governor at the Cayman Islands” as opposed to the legit account which states “Governor of the Cayman Islands.”
The fake account also has no descriptive history of the governor's work experience whereas the real account does.
One tactic that people use to gain your trust and acceptance is by liking other high profile persons or accounts. This appears to be the case where CEOs, high ranking civil servants and even attorney's have connected themselves to this account. We are not sure if the Governor's Office will seek to have the account closed.
UPDATE: January 10, 2019 – Governor issues a statement about fake account:
Statement from Governor’s Office on Fraudulent Social Media Accounts
It has come to our attention that a bogus LinkedIn account has been set up using His Excellency The Governor’s personal information. Moreover a number of people have been contacted from the bogus account requesting contributions to support a charity.
The account entitled “Governor at Cayman Islands” is wholly fabricated. If anyone receives this type of communication from an account by that name they should ignore it, especially any correspondence which suggests donating money to a fund. The Governor would never use social media for such a purpose.
The matter has been reported to both LinkedIn and the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service.
The RCIPS reminds the public to exercise caution when using any social media platform, including LinkedIn. Persons should also be wary of requests from public figures which seem suspicious, especially if these include solicitations for financial details or other personal information.
The Governor does have a LinkedIn account set up some years ago which carries his correct title and has over 500 followers. The URL for this account is https://www.linkedin.com/in/martyn-roper-obe-78806793.
Anyone who may have received such messages should contact the Financial Crimes Unit by emailing [email protected].
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