Online Post About 2.2 Billion Won Investment Loss Revealed as Hoax

A widely shared online post detailing a devastating financial loss due to leveraged ETF investments has been exposed as a fabrication. The post claimed the author lost 2.2 billion won (approximately $1.6 million USD) accumulated over 40 years, leading to bankruptcy.

However, financial news outlet Financial News reported that the story, initially posted on a used goods platform, was false. The author admitted to manipulating an existing post by another investor.

Specifically, the fabricator took a screenshot of another investor's account statement, which showed a total loss of 220,436,099 won (a 78.7% loss). This figure was then altered to 2.204 billion won by adding an extra zero to the amount.

This manipulation extended to other figures in the post, including sales revenue, total sales amount, and total purchase amount, all of which were also multiplied by ten. The original poster of the account statement pointed out the alteration, noting that the numbers looked familiar and that zeros had been added to their photo.

The investigation revealed that the fabricator's actions were designed to amplify the perceived loss, likely to create a more dramatic and attention-grabbing narrative. The core financial details and loss percentages from the original post remained consistent, but the scale was drastically exaggerated.

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The numbers looked familiar, and I saw that zeros were added to my photo.