Watch out for investment scams on LINE
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Updated: July 1, 2026
Investment scams where bad actors use LINE to trick people out of their money have been increasing. To protect yourself, it's crucial to understand how these scams work and what you can do about them.
Scammers typically build trust by pretending to have a romantic interest or by impersonating celebrities. Once they gain your trust, they will try to pressure you into immediately doing what they want. This creates a sense of urgency to cloud your judgment and steal your money.
Common scam tactics
Scammers use 1-on-1 chats, group chats, and OpenChats (only available in Japan, Taiwan, and Thailand) to lure victims into buying fake products or depositing money into fraudulent exchanges.
In 1-on-1 chats
You may be approached by someone you met on an external platform, such as another social media service or a dating app, or by someone impersonating a celebrity or investment expert.
Example of a chat message from someone who was met through an external platform
This type of scammer often starts with friendly or romantic messages to build rapport before pitching an investment opportunity.
If someone mentions money shortly after contacting you, it is highly likely to be a scam.
Example of a chat message from someone impersonating a celebrity or investor
In other cases, fake investment mentors may contact you and offer to teach you investment techniques while heavily promoting their investment products.
In group chats and OpenChats
Scammers posing as celebrities or investors may invite you to group chats focused on investing.
Examples of chat messages from individuals impersonating celebrities or investors
These scammers promote fake opportunities under the guise of financial education.
Be extremely cautious and never click on links sent by strangers, as scammers are also known to use fake charity appeals to steal money in these group chats.
How to protect yourself
Being cautious with strangers
Always be careful when communicating with people you don't know.
Reporting suspicious chats
If you receive a suspicious message in any chat, do not respond to it.
Report the chat immediately in the LINE app by tapping 
> Settings > Report, then selecting Scam or Impersonation as the reason. Rest assured that the other
person won't be notified that you reported them.
Filtering unwanted messages
You can prevent strangers from messaging you or adding you to groups.
To do so, tap the Home tab >
> Privacy and turn on Filter messages.
Blocking unknown friend requests
To stop strangers from adding you as a friend, tap the Home
tab > > Friends and turn off Allow others to add me.
What to do if you've been scammed
If you think that you have been scammed, seek help immediately using the following resources.
- Police: Contact your local police department for help.
- Consumer hotline: Contact your local consumer protection agency for assistance regarding consumer-related disputes and advice.
- Financial services agency: If you've been targeted or deceived by fraudulent investment ads on social media, consider reporting them to your local financial services agency for assistance with suspicious social media investment ads.