I Almost Got Scammed as a Photographer — And Honestly, The Story Was… Creative
It started like any normal job enquiry. A fellow photographer in a small, trusted group asked if anyone could take on a job from a Chinese-speaking client. She passed the contact to me, and I followed up. Now, right from the start, there was one small thing that made me pause.
A Singapore secondary school… reaching out in Chinese. I mean—sure, we’re a bilingual country. But let’s be real for a second. Singapore’s entire education system runs primarily in English. Even the Chinese teachers I know are completely comfortable communicating in English because they went through the same system we all did.
So the idea that a local school would prefer to conduct vendor communication in Chinese? Not impossible… but definitely unusual enough to raise an eyebrow. Still, I didn’t think too much of it. I did my due diligence. I Googled the school. It existed. I checked the teacher’s name. It was listed on the official website. At this point, everything looked legitimate enough to proceed.
We spoke over the phone. He wanted to organise corporate headshots for 38 staff members, with about 15 requiring hair and makeup. It sounded like a standard job. I prepared a proper quote with coverage time, deliverables, usage rights, and even started coordinating makeup artists on my end. He accepted the quote almost immediately.
He moved like he was ordering bubble tea
Looking back, maybe that should have been my first real red flag. Most clients at least pause before committing. This one moved like he was ordering bubble tea.
Because of my previous experience working in a government environment, I casually asked whether the job would go through GeBIZ. For those unfamiliar, GeBIZ is the official procurement system that government agencies and schools typically use to engage vendors. It’s how things are tracked, approved, and paid for in a structured way.
His response was that it wouldn’t be necessary, as the budget had already been allocated.
Now, to be fair, not eveeeeery small job strictly goes through GeBIZ. So again, not a smoking gun. Just… another small thing that didn’t quite sit right.
The Projector they requested. Fun fact, the serial number "CH" indicates it's a China-only model number
A ... Projector... like what?
Then came the plot twist.
The next day, he called me saying he needed a favour. Apparently, the school had an important presentation tomorrow, and their projector had suddenly broken down. They urgently needed a replacement, and—according to him—it could only be sourced from a supplier in Malaysia. And he wanted me to help purchase it on their behalf.
I had to pause for a moment. Because… what?
First of all, who is using a random entertainment projector for an official secondary school presentation? Schools don’t operate like that. They have in-house AV setups, IT departments, or appointed vendors managing their equipment. If something breaks, they don’t suddenly scramble to source a one-off projector from across the border like it’s a last-minute Shopee purchase. And secondly, why is me, a random photographer/vendor they have never met before now doing procurement?
The fake sales personnel I was supposed to buy the projector from. The Shop is legit but of course, our scammer lady isn't.
The Plot Thickens!
The explanation he gave was that the principal had some kind of fallout with the supplier, so they needed a third party to step in. Which, again, sounds dramatic—but not impossible. Just… INCREASINGLY UNLIKELY.
He sent me a contact for the “supplier,” along with a product image and a strong sense of urgency. Everything had to be arranged quickly, with delivery needed by the next afternoon. At this point, I was very very suspicious—but I decided to push a little further, just to see where this would go.
I contacted the supplier. The conversation felt normal. They quoted me a price, responded promptly, and even corrected me when I accidentally gave the wrong model number. Ironically, that made them seem more legitimate.
But something still didn’t sit right. So I did one simple thing.
I searched for the shop independently and found their official listing. Then I called the number listed there, not the one provided to me. The person who answered sounded completely confused when I asked about projectors. He told me they didn’t sell projectors at all—they specialised in sound systems.
In doubt, find the original source information
The Mystery is Solved
That was the moment the entire story fell apart. Up until then, everything had just been slightly off. Nothing outrageous, nothing obviously fake. Just enough plausibility to keep things moving. But this was the first clear contradiction. To confirm my suspicions, I called the school directly using their official contact number. They confirmed that the teacher’s name was real, but there was no such photoshoot being planned, and no such request had been made.
At that point, it was obvious.
This was a scam built on real identities, stitched together with just enough accuracy to feel convincing. To be honest, I’m still not entirely sure what the endgame was. My best guess is that they were hoping I’d go ahead with the purchase and transfer a few thousand dollars to a fake supplier. The urgency, the cross-border setup, and the sudden “favour” all point in that direction. But because I stopped when I did, I never got to see how far they would have taken it.
And maybe that’s the scary part.
This wasn’t sloppy. It wasn’t full of obvious mistakes or broken English. It was thoughtful, layered, and just believable enough to work—especially if you’re busy, trusting, or caught off guard. In the end, I informed both the actual store in Malaysia and the school in Singapore that their names were being used for this, just so they were aware. Then I blocked the number and walked away.
As freelancers, we often operate on trust. Referrals, word of mouth, good faith. Most of the time, that works in our favour. But this experience was a reminder that even the most legitimate-looking opportunities deserve a second look.Because sometimes, it’s not one big red flag. It’s just a series of small, slightly ridiculous details—like a school that “can’t speak English”… or a last-minute cross-border projector emergency—that don’t quite make sense. And that’s my cue to stop engaging.
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Thankful for What I Never Fancied...
A big part of why this didn’t work on me probably has nothing to do with photography at all. It’s from my past experience working in a government environment, where processes can feel… unnecessarily rigid at times. Everything has to go through proper channels, approvals, procurement systems and documentation.
Back then, it felt slow and frustrating. But now I see it differently.
Those layers exist for a reason. They’re there to prevent exactly this kind of situation—where someone tries to bypass systems, create urgency, and get money moving before anyone has time to question it. If I didn’t have that background, I might not have paused at the GeBIZ question , I mean, I wouldn't even know to ask that question. I might have just taken the job at face value and tried to be helpful. So yes—this time, I’ll give some credit to the very systems I used to complain about.
Turns out, a little structure and a bit of healthy scepticism can go a long way. Stay safe out there folks!
