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A Fake Beef Jerky Kickstarter Campaign Almost Got Away With Taking $120,000

Kickstarter Kobe Red Shut Down
Kickstarter

Popular crowdfunding site Kickstarter just shut down a fake campaign for beefy jerky.

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Over $120,000 was raised before Kickstarter froze the funds.

The "company responsible" — Magnus Fun Inc. — has since deleted its account, but it managed to pull the wool over the eyes of 3,300 supporters.

The Kickstarter promised the world's first "100% Japanese Beer Fed Beef Jerky."

CNN Money reports that policing the large amount of Kickstarter campaigns is an overwhelming task, and the crowdfunding site turns to its users to raise red flags. If there's enough evidence of foul play, the site will quickly shut down funding — hopefully before the money is deposited into the company's bank accounts.

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The most obvious red flag was the Kickstarter campaign's lack of information on its founders.

Pitch videos often feature a company's CEO or founder excitedly talking about how their idea deserves your money — Kobe Red's beef jerky video doesn't feature a single face.

A documentary crew vital to the take-down investigated Kobe Red's campaign, pointing out suspicious comments praising the beef jerky, in their film "Kickstarted." 

 

 

Fraud
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