Yet another con was successfully executed by fraudsters in the name of quick and bumper returns through investment in the jewellery business. This is the story of the Torres, a scam that rocked Mumbai this week and was run through a firm called Platinum Hern Pvt Ltd. Torres offered 6% to 11% interest weekly, which is an annual return of 312% to 572%. Investors not only did not question this, but they also lapped up the offer of 20% of the investment by a new investor introduced by them as an upline commission. This is nothing but a classic multi-level marketing scam (MLM) and a Ponzi. The key conspirators have vanished into thin air, leaving a few low-level employees to face prosecution and the heat of several lakh angry ‘investors’ looking at a loss of over Rs1,000 crore.

In all MLMs, Ponzis and money circulation scheme scams, early investors are offered extraordinary commissions to lure or ‘recruit’ new ‘investors’. Torres offered a 20% commission. This is more normal to Ponzi scams; it is the strategy to their growth and expansion. The bumper returns are actually paid out to early investors to convince them that the scheme is genuine. This is often marketed as a ‘be their own boss’ or ‘remote working’ opportunity. It is now turning into a fertile ground for scammers to exploit unsuspecting victims. These scams lure people with promises of high-paying, easy work that can be done even from the comfort of their homes. In reality, these schemes often lead to financial loss, identity theft, or other forms of exploitation.

Let us understand different types of job scams related to remote work or be your own boss.