On 30 April, a 20-year-old Malaysian tweeted this:
NASA IS GIVING ME A SCHOLARSHIP !? Ya Allah, I NEVER thought of of this when I joined the Artemis Challenge. Alhamdulillah. The challenge was to design a spacesuit that would adjust to the Artemis 2024 mission to Mars, and thanks to @rafiqhilmi_ ‘s question, I made it. Syukur pic.twitter.com/w6aCahmZdN
— Saturn ? (@theotherazharal) April 30, 2020
Yes, according to the man, Azhar Ali, he had been granted a scholarship by NASA.
He had apparently scored 96.77 per cent in a “2020 NASA Artemis Challenge”, beating out more than 3 million entries worldwide to earn the much-desired scholarship.
Azhar’s Twitter account was flooded with praises and compliments, including a congratulatory message from Malaysia’s Prime Minister, Muhyiddin Yassin.
Tahniah Saudara Azhar. Kejayaan yang amat membanggakan. Semoga terus maju jaya. https://t.co/DDVUu3aJsO
— Muhyiddin Yassin (@MuhyiddinYassin) May 1, 2020
Sounds like a great, uplifting story during a dark period for humanity, right?
Except for the fact that the whole thing was a sham.
M’sian Who Got Praises for ‘NASA Scholarship’ Said the Scholarship Might be a Scam
As you know, nothing gets past the internet, and some skeptical netizens began to look into the alleged scholarship offer a few hours after his tweet went viral.
After some digging, they found some inconsistencies:
- There were grammatical mistakes and typographical errors in his “Nasa certificate”
- His profile was missing on the website that offered the challenge
- One requirement of the challenge stated that one has to be a US citizen or a permanent resident of the country in order to join
- The challenge was meant for a team rather than individuals and the challenge is done on-site in Houston
After discovering these inconsistencies, the eyebrows of many netizens were raised so high they threatened to leave their foreheads.
And so the accusatory comments started pouring in:
This looks photoshopped. Original image next to an actual citizen scientist below pic.twitter.com/8ndFspCnWF
— #theidiotsareloose (@kptanb) May 2, 2020
He's fake. Don't bother to respect this guy anymore
— Elsa ❄️ (@Mkrz29) May 2, 2020
— ??????? (@iHX_Kimilol) May 2, 2020
Another question, when did you go to Texas to test your interface? What software language did you use to design the user interface? Could you share us a picture of you at NASA space center?
— Kay (@sirennextdoor) May 2, 2020
And so he did what any innocent person would do, he immediately made his Twitter account private.
But then he came back a few days later with an explanation: it was all a scam.
A Scam Challenge
He claimed that he really did take part in a “suit designing” challenge for NASA and received an email weeks later claiming that he has been selected.
and waited for the best upon submission two weeks later. Upon another two weeks, I received an email claiming that I’ve been selected as top 1%. Out of content, I shared this great news with my friends.
— Saturn ? (@theotherazharal) May 3, 2020
He also explained that the infamous picture of him accompanied by the label “citizen scientist” was a screenshot he took of a site that was linked in the email.
Oddly, he also claimed to have received emails from the National University Of Singapore but without using the NUS domain, which was apparently “another indication of a scam”.
On top of that, I raised the matter to NASA in their official website to further secure its entitlement. Using this opportunity, I would also like to make a request for people to stop making false statements on my behalf.
— Saturn ? (@theotherazharal) May 3, 2020
The 20-year-old said he has written to NUS and NASA in regard to the matter but he is yet to receive any replies.
He urged his fellow Malaysians not to “jeopardise” his future by claiming he had lied about the scholarship and added that he is not going to apologise for being a “victim of a scam”.
What we, myself included, can learn from this is that we should always check for authenticity before engaging or posing any form of news to the public. I’m not going to apologise upon being a Victim of a Scam.
— Saturn ? (@theotherazharal) May 3, 2020
He stated that this incident is a reminder for everyone to always check for authenticity before sharing anything.
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But some netizens are unconvinced.
Kekeke my thought exactly. When he's caught, its a scam. Just like when someone posted sth bad, and got a backlash, and said he's hacked. Maybe he's bored but no matter how bored he was, lying shouldnt be an option. let alone lying to the whole country who wished him well.
— Kay (@sirennextdoor) May 3, 2020
Don't be sad.
When I get my USD3 billion helping a fallen dictator's nephew transfer some money out of Nigeria, I will buy you a spaceship.
— ian (@f15teen15) May 3, 2020
I could not help but notice the overuse of the word ‘upon’ in this thread. And the very awkward use of the word ‘upon’ in the initial ‘NASA results’. As if written by the same person.
— Hajar Nur Asyiqin (@HajarNurAsyiqin) May 3, 2020
Your narcissistic behavior is on full display young one. Please treat yourself to a therapist. That sense of grandiose and manipulation is a bit too much.
— Kay (@sirennextdoor) May 3, 2020
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So, was it a scam or was it all a lie?
I have to admit, the fact that the incorrect use of the word “upon” is present in both his tweets and the NASA congratulatory message is a bit incriminating.
But we have no way to definitively prove he lied, so for now, this issue will remain up in the air.
A little melodrama on the net never hurt anyone, right?