— Inside the Fake “Cathay Pacific” Campaign: The Marketing Behind the Manipulation
“Business class flights for two, just ¥120,000!?”
That eye-catching ad quickly spread across social media, drawing massive attention. But in reality, it was a scam—a sophisticated ad disguised as a travel campaign, designed to deceive.
This case offers a perfect example of how marketing techniques can be misused to exploit trust and urgency. Let’s take a closer look.
🎭 Building Trust Through Fabricated Credibility
The fake campaign claimed to be run by three different travel agencies—none of which actually existed. By presenting seemingly legitimate names and logos, the scam created an illusion of trust.
More deceptively, the comments section on social media was filled with fake testimonials:
- “Just booked! I can’t believe I got this price!”
- “Planning a trip with my friend—thanks for sharing!”
- “Only a few seats left—hurry up!”
These comments were planted to simulate positive social engagement and reduce skepticism among viewers. This is a textbook example of abusing the psychological principle of social proof—the tendency to follow the behavior of others, especially when uncertain.
🧠 When Social Proof Becomes a Trap
In authentic marketing, social proof helps consumers make informed decisions by showing what others are doing or recommending:
- Product reviews
- Follower counts
- Word-of-mouth referrals
However, scam ads corrupt this mechanism by artificially manufacturing “evidence” of credibility.
What should be a helpful guide becomes a carefully crafted trap.
This case reveals just how powerful marketing tools can be—and how dangerous they become when twisted for malicious purposes.
⚠️ Why Do These Ads Spread So Easily?
It’s natural to wonder:
“Why is this kind of ad allowed to appear?”
“Isn’t someone monitoring this?”
The short answer: platform limitations.
Major platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Meta (Facebook and Instagram), and others rely heavily on automated systems to screen paid advertisements. These systems:
- Use algorithms to detect violations
- Often miss scams on the first pass
- Allow harmful ads to remain live for hours—or even days—before removal
Meanwhile, scammers rotate through multiple accounts, reposting the same ad over and over. Even if one is removed, another takes its place. It’s a game of digital whack-a-mole.
💰 Why Scam Ads Keep Thriving: Profitable with Minimal Risk
Scam ads persist for a simple reason: they’re profitable, even with very few victims.
Let’s look at the example of the fake Cathay Pacific ad:
- Suppose 1,000 people see the ad
- Just 1% (10 people) are deceived and pay ¥50,000 each
- That’s a total of ¥500,000 in revenue
- The ad cost? Likely much lower than that
This low-risk, high-reward model makes scam advertising an attractive business for fraudsters.They use marketing strategies—like urgency, exclusivity, and social proof—not to sell real products, but to sell lies.
And because they mimic real campaigns so effectively, even cautious users may struggle to tell the difference.
🔍 Coming Next: How to Fight Back Against Scam Ads
As we’ve seen, scam ads exploit both human psychology and tech platform vulnerabilities. So how can we protect ourselves and others?
- What warning signs should consumers watch for?
- What can companies do to protect their brand from impersonation?
- How can platforms improve their detection systems?
In the next issue, we’ll explore concrete strategies for identifying scam ads and defending against them—both as individuals and as organizations. 💡✨ (To be continued)