​Sidharth Malhotra, Chris Evans, Kartik Aaryan: Celeb fans who were duped in SCAMS​

Several high-profile celebrities, from Sidharth Malhotra to Chris Evans, and Kartik Aaryan, have found themselves in the midst of alarming scams targeting their fans. These incidents involved imposters engaging in fraudulent activities and duping unsuspecting fans out of significant amounts of money over promises of meeting their favourite stars. With an increasing number of fans falling victim to these scams, several celebrities have come forward to condemn the fraudulent activities carried out in their names. Take a look.

Bollywood actor Sidharth Malhotra issued a statement on Wednesday urging caution after one of his fans claimed to have been scammed out of Rs 50 Lakh by a fake fan page. In a statement shared on his Instagram handle, he wrote, "It has been brought to my attention that certain fraudulent activities/scams have been circulating on various social media platforms, allegedly claiming to be associated with or in relation to me, my family, and people claiming to be my fans and seeking money."
Malhotra assured his followers that neither he nor his family or team supports such actions and urged everyone to report suspicious requests to the authorities.

Just last year, a fan of actor Kartik Aaryan was in the news when she was allegedly duped of Rs 82 lakh. In an incident reported by TOI, a scammer promised the fan, Aishwarya, a meeting with Aaryan in exchange for an investment in a fictitious film titled 'Love In London'. The fraudster, Krishna Sharma, who has a history of similar scams, managed to ​extract the money from the woman, after which he kept delaying the alleged meeting with the actor and later disappeared.

Amidst the frenzy surrounding Johnny Depp's case with his ex-wife Amber Heard, The actor's team issued a statement regarding imposters using his name for fraudulent activities. In a statement issued on his handle, he wrote, "We have been made aware that there continues to be fraudulent imposters pretending to be Johnny or those in his teams, offering meetings and promising time with him, often for payment." They emphasized that these were scams and urged fans to be cautious.

In a rather 'strange' and shocking incident, a woman from Kentucky, named McKala, was scammed into believing she was in an online relationship with 'Stranger Things' star Dacre Montgomery. The woman made headlines around the world when she revealed that she was not only duped out of $10,000, but also divorced her husband, believing she was going to be in a romantic relationship with the actor.

During the lockdown, Chris Evans hit the headlines when fans claimed that the actor sent them DMs asking for money. The 'Captain America' star soon took note of the same and issued a statement warning fans about imposters and fraudsters exploiting fans amidst the Covid crisis. He stated, "I would never, EVER ask any fan for money. If you’ve had an interaction with someone claiming to be me asking for money, it’s fake." Fans responded with screenshots of messages they had received from the many imposters.