“‘SORRY HE DID what?’ The clause in Glen Hansard’s will that silenced the room.” 

Now, wouldn’t that pique your interest?

Well, it’s designed to do just that, as this is the latest scam post featuring late singer Glen Hansard that is doing the rounds on X. 

Screenshot of the scam post. X X

The Journal found at least 15 separate accounts posting the exact same scam this week, all of which seemed to be registered in Turkey, according to records. All the accounts have subsequently been removed. 

The post usually contains a single sentence saying: “Hmm… there’s definitely something interesting in there.”

It’s accompanied by a blurred, fake still image of Hansard apparently playing his guitar. A ‘play’ button directs you to a fake article, purportedly by the Irish Independent, featuring the branding, header, and all the bells and whistles of the actual site.

Screengrab of the fake Irish Independent article.

“When Ireland learned of Glen Hansard’s death on Tuesday morning, the tributes came fast.”

Not so fast – as Hansard’s death was actually on a Wednesday in July, several weeks before this fake article dated Tuesday 8 September.

The fake article goes on to detail various fake details about Hansard’s will.

The fake article then describes “access to an investment account holding €480,000″, along with a screenshot of that fake bank account.

The scam goes to attempt to convince people that Hansard had invested in a trading platform and had turned €250 into €480,000.

There is even a fake letter enclosed with the will, written to Hansard’s wife Maire, saying that he wants her to invest in the same platform.

“I wanted you and Christy to have something that doesn’t depend on me being alive and able to play,” the fake letter reads.

“Trust the system. I tested it for three years. It works.”

It then ends with a more ‘Hansard like’ appeal – “And please, buy Christy a guitar. A cheap one. The cheap ones have more soul.”

There is even one last attempt to convince the reader that it is legitimate – saying that fake Irish Independent had conducted an independent investigation into the platform, finding it to be “legitimate” and “fully operational” in Ireland.

These types of hoaxes have been around so long that the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has already issued a public warning about them.

And this isn’t the first time something like this has happened, using Glen Hansard specifically as bait.

But these new scams are different in the fact that the frontman for the scam is someone who has passed away.

As our FactCheck Editor Stephen McDermott writes, “given how the methods of online scammers have evolved in recent years, it likely means we’ve entered an era where even the dead are seen as fair game to con people out of money”. 

“Unlike other fake endorsements, Hansard isn’t around to debunk it or sue social media platforms to stop them from hosting these posts (as people like Micheál Martin and Denis O’Brien have done); instead, that responsibility will likely fall to his grieving partner.”

Another X post.

With more scams popping up each day, the CCPC has reminded us that “scammers are skilled at appearing knowledgeable and trustworthy, with professional-looking websites and a carefully crafted proposal.”

They advise always checking if a firm is regulated on the Central Bank of Ireland register, and never investing in something you don’t understand.