00:02Taipei resident Diana was on the eve of a divorce in 2022 and was worried about how
00:08it would affect her finances. Then she learned about a new friend her mother had made online.
00:40By the time Diana realized they'd been scammed, her mother had already died, and the inheritance
00:46that she'd left behind, some of which was meant to be passed down to Diana's daughter,
00:50was gone.
01:07Diana is just one of countless scam survivors in Taiwan, a problem that has grown out of
01:13control in recent years. A January poll by local periodical business today found that up to 1.8
01:20million Taiwanese, or around 9 percent of the country's population, have fallen prey to
01:26scammers. And of those surveyed, 79 percent said the situation with fraud in Taiwan is extremely
01:32severe. And though the official numbers have fallen, scammers seem to be getting smarter,
01:38finding new ways to identify and ensnare their targets.
01:52Taiwan警察对于追查链上金流是非常薄弱的,我老实讲,都要透过
01:57很多的一些追避流公司去追查.可是问题是,这些专业软体都需要很多钱
02:03,受害人都已经没钱了,更不会花钱去投资这个东西。 Even with
02:05these risks, many survivors find it hard to speak out about what happened to them, even if
02:10that means suffering in silence. Counseling psychologist Ann Chen says it's common to feel
02:16a profound sense of shame after being scammed, something that can greatly affect how people
02:21see themselves, and how much they're willing to share about their experience.
02:29羞愧感这个东西,它是一个我们在对外界,譬如说外界它怎么看我们,那一个公平的世界里面
02:40,譬如说道德价值观里面,他们可能会觉得说,
02:42你是因为你很贪婪,所以你才会被骗,或是你是因为你很笨,所以你才会被骗。
02:58所以我觉得那个羞愧感它就会让我们自己对我们自我产生了怀疑。
03:07还有一个部分就是社会它怎么贴这个标签,可能也会造成这些受害者的羞愧感会更加地强烈这样子。
03:10The social consequences of this can be severe.
03:13In 2024, suicide became one of the top ten causes of death in Taiwan, the first time in over a
03:19decade.
03:20Experts say rampant fraud is likely a major factor.
03:24Given the risks to their mental health, how can survivors cope?
03:27For Diana, she found peace by speaking out.
03:34我自己从2022年到现在,我走过了三年多。
03:35我成为一个 survivor,好不容易,我觉得现在能够见光,
03:42然后成为一个能够,就是一个倡议者,就是让大家知道说,其实这是一个很不容易的路
03:50,但是必须要重新经营人生的路。 Though the road to financial and emotional recovery
03:54was long and uneven, Diana says taking responsibility for herself and her
03:59daughter's future helped push her through.
04:01She hopes her experience can serve as an example for other people struggling with the fallout of a scam.
04:07Devin Tai and Jeremy Olivier with Zoom in Zoom out for Taiwan Plus.
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