Newscenter Media News The digital age, a realm of endless possibilities, had dawned upon us all for long. Yet, for many Nigerians, it was a mirage, a tantalizing glimpse of prosperity obscured by a veil of digital illiteracy. Amidst this digital divide, a shadowy platform emerged, promising financial freedom to the masses. But behind its alluring facade lurked a sinister truth, a calculated exploitation of the vulnerable, a digital heist in plain sight.
The Goshare project was met with grin from many Nigerians who came across the link; through friends who shared it with them, looking for referrals, or stumbled on it while enjoying their daily scrolls on their social media spaces. The project comes in the form of pay-per-task performed, a close example of other social earning platforms in history.
Going further to earning bigger rewards, users are required to link their WhatsApp accounts to the platform; a very big red flag as it grants the organisers automatic access to the user’s WhatsApp accounts. This, an unfortunate step most of the users carried out, without knowledge of the possible consequences.
The update; as most Nigerians do call any paying project, as researched, is owned by Gname.com Pte ltd., based in Mississippi US. The site uses the WhatsApp accounts of their users to send messages foreign numbers, and sets their profile pictures to be visible to only the account users. The consequence was the largescale banning of these accounts recently by WhatsApp.
While it was written on the homepage of the site that the users’ WhatsApp accounts will be rented for marketing, what’s being done with the accounts is the opposite as the accounts are being used to spam foreign contacts. In addition, no comprehensive terms and conditions of use is available for the users to consent to, before joining.
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Narrating his experience, Uwaisu Bello explained how he got his first one thousand naira from the platform, before his friend alerted him of the disappearance of his profile picture from his WhatsApp and the reports of other people being banned on WhatsApp. “I quickly unlinked my WhatsApp from it and realized I am the only one viewing my profile picture, the privacy settings had been changed for the profile picture to be viewed only by me, this they did with my consent. A friend of mine also said they are using his number to chat foreign numbers, and his account later got suspended for that’, Uwaisu explained.
A Facebook user, Boluwatife Ayano, while explaining her experience and informing everyone to go unlink their accounts narrated how she truly got paid by the platform, but what’s sad to hear was what her account was being used to for. “Truly, the platform really paid. I’m a beneficiary. I withdraw 19k in a space of five days. The last money, 10k (Ten Thousand) dropped this afternoon.
Another 10k is still pending. But a friend of mine pointed out something to me. She said my Whatsapp profile pic is not visible again, that I’m the only one that is seeing it. Truly, I’m seeing the DP, but people can’t see it. I have logged out and unlinked my Whatsapp from the website”, she narrated.
In another turn of event, Haleemah experienced shock after she saw her number being used to message a Zimbabwean and Italian number. “A friend of mine instructed me to check my archived chats upon realizing my profile picture is no more visible to the public and behold, I found out my number was used in messaging a Zimbabwe and Italy number, without my consent!”, she exclaimed.
In the gleaming metropolis of Lagos or the sun-baked plains of Sokoto, the story of Goshare is a stark reminder of the perilous intersection between poverty and the digital divide. It’s a cautionary tale etched in the blinking screens of countless phones, a testament to the vulnerability of those yearning for a financial lifeline in a nation where opportunity flickers like a dying candle.
This digital heist exposes the festering wound of digital illiteracy, a national crisis that leaves citizens defenseless against the wolves in virtual clothing. The allure of quick money, a siren song for those battling economic hardship, drowns out the whispers of caution.
The consequences ripple outwards, staining not just individual accounts but Nigeria’s digital reputation. Spam messages flood inboxes abroad, painting a picture of a nation struggling to navigate the complexities of the online world.
By: Sebiotimo Abdullateef Ayomide
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