Fact Check: Videos of shopkeepers being conned by fake Paytm app are scripted
A video showing a young woman attempting to con a shopkeeper by paying for her purchase using a fake Paytm app is being widely shared on social media.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 10 Jan 2022 1:54 PM GMT
Hyderabad: A video showing a young woman attempting to con a shopkeeper by paying for her purchase using a fake Paytm app is being widely shared on social media.
NewsMeter received a request to verify the video on WhatsApp.
NewsMeter also found another similar video where a girl attempts to con another shopkeeper by attempting to pay through a fake Paytm app.
Fact Check
The claim is misleading.
NewsMeter ran a keyword search and found that several users had shared the video of a young girl attempting to con a shopkeeper by using a fake Paytm app. The videos linked back to its original source, the Facebook page of Nishant Soni who is a popular content creator.
We found the same video on Nishant Soni's page that was posted on 3 January 2022.
NewsChecker, a fact-checking website had earlier reported that the video was scripted. Nishant Soni had told the website that the video was dramatized and only for educational purposes.
However, we didn't find any disclaimer on the viral video uploaded on his page.
We also found the second video on the Facebook page of Deepika Shah, another popular content creator. Shah had posted the video on 19 December.
Deepika has also posted another video on her page, clarifying that the videos she posts on her Facebook page are scripted.
The video posted by Deepika was shared on Twitter by Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma to exhort merchants to use Paytm soundbox.
Hence, the claim is misleading.
