Scam posts carry Carrie 'quotes' to boost crypto scheme

Lachlan Coady January 23, 2023
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Carrie Bickmore won a Gold Logie for her work on The Project Image by Joe Castro/AAP PHOTOS

WHAT WAS CLAIMED

Carrie Bickmore was fired from The Project after promoting a cryptocurrency trading scheme.

OUR VERDICT

False. Quotes have been falsely attributed to her as part of a coordinated scam.

A Facebook post claims to reveal the real reason Carrie Bickmore left The Project.

An article linked to the post alleges the Australian TV personality was fired from the show for promoting a cryptocurrency trading scheme.

But the claim is false. The article falsely attributes quotes to Ms Bickmore in an effort to perpetuate an online scam.

The post (archived here), made on December 13, 2022, features an image of Ms Bickmore alongside the caption: "The facts surrounding the tragic end to her career, which are considered disgraceful, have sparked outrage across the nation this morning."

Facebook scam post
Quotes used in the online scam have been attributed to various celebrities over a number of years.

The accompanying link leads to a fake news article on a page made to look like the Forbes website.

It supposedly features an interview with Ms Bickmore. It is claimed she revealed a "wealth loophole" during a recording of The Project, which led to anger from Commonwealth Bank executives who demanded she be removed from the program.

"What's made me successful is jumping into new opportunies [sic] quickly- without any hesitation. And right now, my number one money-maker is a new cryptocurrency auto-trading program..." she is claimed to have said, among many other quotes.

But the attributed quotes are fake - and Ms Bickmore is not the first public figure that they have been attributed to.

A Google search reveals they have also been linked to actor Hugh Jackman, England football manager Gareth Southgate, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Canadian billionaire Gerry Schwartz.

Hugh Jackmanpictured in 2019.
Hugh Jackman is among the other well-known faces to be used by the scammers.

In 2019, actor Kate Winslet said she would take action against scammers who had falsely attributed the quotes to her.

Ms Bickmore announced she was leaving The Project in October 2022, telling viewers: "It's been the hardest decision of my professional life to make this call, but it's time for a new challenge, time for the next chapter."

The Verdict

The claim that Carrie Bickmore was fired from The Project after promoting a cryptocurrency trading scheme is false.

Fake quotes were falsely attributed to her as part of a bogus interview. The same quotes have also been incorrectly attributed to other public figures, including Hugh Jackman and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

False – The claim is inaccurate.

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Sources

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