Johannesburg – Popular singer and dancer Nestum, whose real name is Zanele Nyakale-Peterson, has become the latest victim of a cybercrime scam after her phone was hacked and used by fraudsters to extort money from her contacts. The criminal operation began when the scammers accessed her phone and began sending out fraudulent messages, pretending to be the star and making false promises about job opportunities and tenders.
Nestum realised something was wrong on Friday night when she received concerned calls from some of her contacts, asking if she was okay. “I was getting calls from people asking if I was alright,” she told ZiMoja. It turned out that the hacker was sending out strange and unsolicited messages to her contacts, some of which were downright alarming.
The scammers used a variety of tactics to exploit the trust her contacts had in her, with one of the most common being a claim that Nestum had applied for a tender and needed to pay someone to secure it. “To some contacts, the hacker was demanding gratuity, claiming that I applied for a tender and needed to pay someone to get the tender,” Nestum explained.
But it didn’t stop there. The criminals went further, targeting job seekers with a promise of immediate employment. The imposter, still posing as Nestum, began telling people that there were vacancies available at the SABC—positions ranging from HR to admin to security and driving jobs. The scammer used urgency to pressure potential victims, stating that the deadline for applications was the same day. “The hacker promised people that I had vacancies available at the SABC and asked them to pay as quickly as possible,” she recalled.
For Nestum, the most painful part of the scam was knowing that her contacts—some of whom were desperate for work—might have fallen victim to the fraudsters. “I fear that some of my contacts fell for the scam and deposited the cash in his bank account. It hurts me because that’s not my character,” she said.
The scammers promised varying amounts of money, from R5,000 to R7,500, depending on the position and the salary that was supposedly available. “I don’t know how much they paid, but it breaks my heart. I can’t even refund them,” she added.
Nestum expressed her deep concern for the victims of the scam, emphasising that she never intended to exploit anyone or deceive them into paying for a job or tender.
In response to the fraud, Nestum took swift action to protect herself and her contacts. “I had to change my number because of this,” she said, explaining that her old number had been compromised by the scammer.
She also made a heartfelt plea to anyone who might have been affected by the scam. “Anyone who is claiming to be me out there, please don’t give anyone cash. I am not selling anything, and I am not offering jobs,” she warned.
