'It's a scam': Financial advisor and TV host Eoin McGee warns people about scams using his name
FINANCIAL PLANNER AND host of the RTÉ TV programme How To Be Good With Money Eoin McGee has warned people against being fooled by a spate of fake offers of investment advice that use his name and image.
'It's a scam. Please don't get caught out,' McGee told his followers in
a video posted on Instagram
, noting that many of the fake offers have been made via Whatsapp.
'There are a whole pile of different fake accounts and scams using my name, trying to trick you, going around over the last three or four days.
'We are aware of them. I'm doing everything I can to try and shut them down.'
The offers of financial advice have also appeared on Facebook.
One such post impersonates McGee and offers an assessment of the investment potential of chipmaker Nvidia and its competitors, accompanied by a link to 'sing up' for more advice.
A scam post on Facebook impersonating Eoin McGee
Screenshot
Screenshot
'We don't have these magic fixes or tricks about how to get rich,' he said.
Advertisement
McGee said that neither he nor anyone who works at his financial advice company Prosperous would ever approach people on Whatsapp.
'It's not my style,' he said.
McGee thanked the people who had been in touch with him and the company about the situation and reported the ads.
'That's what I want you to do. If you see one of these things, report it and block it.'
McGee is the latest target for online scammers, who have used the names and faces of other well-known Irish TV personalities in fake news stories, which have been documented by
The Journal FactCheck
.
Other targets have included comedian
Dara Ó Briain and Newstalk radio host Pat Kenny.
Ever wondered how disinformation spreads so rapidly – or who is behind it? Check out our FactCheck Knowledge Bank for essential reads and guides to finding good information online.
Visit Knowledge Bank
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
Learn More
Support The Journal
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
A third of companies are looking to scale back on work-from-home option, despite its popularity with employees, survey finds
That's according to the 2025 Benefits Trends Survey carried out by WTW, a multinational insurance broker. Orlagh Farrington, head of health and benefits at WTW in Ireland, said the one-third figure was a slight decline on the previous year, adding employers are looking to balance their needs with employee expectations. 'Nearly half of Irish jobseekers say they would turn down a role that doesn't offer hybrid or remote options,' she said. 'This puts employers in a challenging position: while some are eager to bring teams back onsite, they risk losing out on top talent if flexibility is reduced too aggressively.' The survey also found that rising benefit costs were a top issue, with 61pc of employers saying it was influencing benefit strategies. Healthcare benefits was identified as the most prevalent cost, with 41pc saying this was the most challenging to implement. Farrington said Irish employers were 'under increasing pressure to do more with less'. 'Most employers have indicated that rising budget pressures and increasing benefit costs are limiting their ability to enhance or expand their benefits offerings,' she added. "Unlike in previous years, when benefit enhancements were more common, employers are now focused on maintaining current benefit levels in a cost-neutral way.' So far, she had not seen widespread cuts to benefits. WTW's survey included 41 Irish employers, representing over 41,000 employees.
Irish Independent
3 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Kraken becomes first crypto giant to get Mica licence from Central Bank
The move means that Kraken can now trade across the 30-member European Economic Area as a fully-regulated entity. Andrew Mulvenny, the Dublin-based general manager of trading platform for Kraken, described the move as a 'huge milestone and a massive achievement'. It comes after a run of bad news for Ireland in the crypto space, with Coinbase following Gemini out of Ireland as its main regulatory hub in recent months. Coinbase chose to switch its EU regulatory base to Luxembourg, saying it preferred the regulation climate there to Dublin. Gemini said the same thing, favouring Malta. Both of the crypto giants had originally established their European regulatory hubs in Dublin in 2023, before Central Bank governor Gabrioel Makhlouf described cryptocurrencies as a 'Ponzi scheme'. IDA chief executive Michael Lohan said Kraken's Mica licence from the Central Bank here was important. 'This landmark moment strengthens Ireland's standing as a leading fintech hub in Europe,' he said. 'We value Kraken's ongoing investment and engagement and we look forward to further collaboration as the digital finance sector continues to grow in Ireland and across the EU.' The chair of Blockchain Ireland, Lory Kehoe, also put a positive light on the Kraken news against the background of regulatory uncertainty in recent months. 'This is a win for the Irish ecosystem,' he said. 'It strengthens Ireland's position in the EU's digital finance landscape, creates pathways for high-quality jobs and gives clarity to start-ups, institutions, and investors building in Ireland.' ADVERTISEMENT Mr Kehoe also predicted that more Mica licences would be issued by the Central Bank. A spokesperson for Kraken said that the Mica licence represented a 'pivotal milestone' for the San Francisco firm. 'Being the first major global crypto platform to receive authorisation from the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) affirms Kraken's commitment to building for the long term,' said Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi. 'Over the past several years, our team has worked tirelessly to meet the CBI's gold standard regulatory expectations. This licence reflects that effort and places us in a strong position to expand our product offering, grow our institutional and retail client base and deliver secure, accessible and fully regulated crypto services to millions more people across the EU.'
RTÉ News
3 hours ago
- RTÉ News
July deadline for higher tariffs may be extended
US President Donald Trump could extend a July deadline for higher tariffs on imports, the White House has said. Mr Trump had set 9 July as the deadline after which punitive tariffs on a range of EU goods will take effect, with the EU promising some €95 billion in retaliatory countermeasures. Asked if there were plans to further the pause, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters: "Perhaps it could be extended, but that's a decision for the president to make." "The deadline is not critical," she told a media briefing. She said the president could "simply provide these countries with a deal if they refuse to make us one by the deadline". Ms Leavitt added that Mr Trump can "pick a reciprocal tariff rate that he believes is advantageous for the United States". On the progress of trade negotiations, Ms Leavitt said US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is "working very hard" and has had "good and productive discussions with many of our key trading partners." Taoiseach: Strong appetite at EU level for US trade deal It comes as Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said there is a strong appetite at EU level for a trade deal with the United States. At a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, Mr Martin said: "Everybody within the European Union is focused on arriving at a negotiated settlement with the United States by the ninth of July, which I think is extremely important to give certainty to markets, certainty to investors, certainty to workers and industry. "Every effort has to be made to get a landing zone that we can live with. It's not ideal. It's not optimal. Europe doesn't want tariffs, but we have to deal with the situation that is before us." Ireland has sought to remove agrifood products, medtech and aviation from the EU's list of countermeasures, in order to protect important sectors to the Irish economy and to avoid provoking further US retaliation. The Taoiseach said: "There is no painless tariff war. Obviously, we have made a response to any retaliatory list. Europe has to be united going into these negotiations, and as these negotiations come to a conclusion, but I do genuinely detect an atmosphere that's focused on getting a deal, both on the US side and on the European Union side." EU diplomats have said a growing number of EU countries now favoured a quick resolution. Belgian prime minister Bart de Wever said: "A trade war makes both sides of the Atlantic poorer and is just stupid. So I support the approach of the Commission president, who always keeps calm and has negotiated for a result." "If that were to end in one-sided and unfair tariffs then we have to take proportionate and very targeted countermeasures." The EU is already facing US import tariffs of 50% on its steel and aluminium, 25% for cars and car parts, along with a10% tariff on most other EU goods, which Trump has threatened could rise to 50% without an agreement. The United States' only completed trade deal to date is with Britain, with the broad 10% tariff still in place. "There is a group of EU countries that want to protect companies by seemingly accepting something they have gotten used to - a 10% baseline," one EU diplomat said. One question EU leaders face is whether it should respond with its own measures to such a baseline tariff. The European Union has agreed, but not imposed, tariffs on €21 billion of US goods and is debating a further package of tariffs on up to €95 billion of US imports. Among the EU rebalancing options is a tax on digital advertising, which would hit US giants like Alphabet Inc's Google, Meta, Apple, X or Microsoft and eat into the trade surplus in services the US has with the EU. The bloc has a trade surplus with the US in goods. The Commission has proposed an EU-US deal to cut respective tariffs on industrial goods to zero, along with potential further EU purchases of liquefied natural gas and soybeans. Washington has shown little obvious interest, preferring to highlight items it considers as barriers, such as EU value-added tax, environmental standards and rules on online platforms, on which the EU does not want to move.
