The Statement
AAP FactCheck examined two posts on a page titled “Jetstar Fans“. The first post, on September 15, 2019, featured photos of a luxury resort villa built standing in clear, shallow water, beaches and two open coconuts with straws inserted.
Text accompanying the image reads: “The winnеr of our competition (Denise M. – London, UK) was not a legal citizen of AU or NZ and therefore unable to claim their prize. Therefore, we will be giving out the Bora Bora hoIiday package for 2 once more to someone who shaᴦеs and commеnts below by Sep 20th. Likе our pagе for updates.”
The post has attracted more than 700 reactions, more than 2,900 comments and has been shared more than 1,100 times.
The second post, on September 17, 2019, features the same photographs as the September 15 post, however this time they are overlaid with text that reads: “The winner of the competition [Daisy T. – Melbourne] refused their prize for personal reasons, so we will be giving it out once more. Someone who shares and comments ‘Done’ will receive it! Like our page Jetstar Fans for updates. Closes in 48 hours.”
This second post has attracted more than 90 reactions, more than 460 comments and more than 230 shares.
The Analysis
Bora Bora is an island in French Polynesia in the South Pacific. AAP FactCheck found the image of the holiday villa featured in the “Jetstar Fans” posts is of a villa at the Conrad Bora Bora Nui hotel.
The “Jetstar Fans” Facebook page features a profile image with the Jetstar logo – the name “Jetstar” followed by a white, five-pointed star on an orange background. A check of the page transparency information on the “Jetstar Fans” page shows the page was created on September 15, 2019.
The page had been liked by 987 people and followed by 1,012 people as of September 19, 2019. AAP FactCheck noted that the page does not feature a blue “verified” tick.
Jetstar Airways is a budget airline wholly owned by Australian airline Qantas.
The Jetstar Australia Facebook page was created on September 24, 2010 and does have a blue “verified” tick. The verified page has the Jetstar logo as its profile image, but the orange background is lighter in colour. The Jetstar Australia page has been liked by 725,741 people and has been followed by 722,515 people.
A spokesperson for Jetstar Australia told AAP FactCheck the “Jetstar Fans”Facebook page was not connected to the airline.
“This is not a legitimate Jetstar Facebook platform and our teams are taking the steps to have it removed,” the Jetstar spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said that “from time to time fake Jetstar Facebook pages appear, promoting competitions requiring you to do nothing but like or share a page to win prizes like free Jetstar flight tickets”.
“Sharing information about scams like these is the best defence we have against them.”
Jetstar has an article on its website warning about Facebook scams which, it says, “ are often ‘like-farming’ scams, which accumulate thousands of likes and then sell the page on to dodgy marketers”.
The Verdict
Based on this evidence, AAP FactCheck has concluded that both posts and their offers to give away a holiday package or prize are false. Jetstar Australia has confirmed that the “Jetstar Fans” page is not a legitimate page.
False – The primary claims of the Facebook posts are factually inaccurate.
* AAP FactCheck is an accredited member of the International Fact-Checking Network. To keep up with our latest fact checks, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
First published September 19, 2019, 19:16 AEST. Updated on September 23, 2019 at 12:46 AEST.
UPDATE: On September 23, 2019, AAP FactCheck was notified that the “Jetstar Fans” page was removed following action by Jetstar Australia.
