In China, a fashion influencer with 3 million followers on social media has apparently become a victim of identity theft. Chen Xin has accused her long-time personal assistant of deception.
According to the social media influencer, the assistant spent 6 years pretending to be a wealthy Chinese student at Harvard Medical School, the South China Morning Post reported.
The woman, Jiang, allegedly accessed Chen’s home using stored passwords, wore her luxury clothing and used personal items to stage photographs.
She also reused unused images taken by Chen, using artificial intelligence (AI) to replace Chen’s body with her own, SCMP reported.
Investigations suggest Jiang never traveled abroad. Instead, she altered IP data while using stolen photos of overseas students to support the false story.
The woman even hosted a livestream about intelligent women’s self-growth and reportedly earned about 1.14 million yuan (nearly ₹1.5 crore) in viewer tips.
According to Chen, the scheme was uncovered only after a stranger warned her. The case has drawn attention online, raising concerns about privacy and digital identity.
It also highlights the risks influencers face when entrusting close employees with personal access.
According to a social media user, Jiang claimed to be Chen Xin’s sister after some followers had recognized Chen’s home in her photos. To support the lie, Jiang even shared the home’s location and used Chen’s identity to date people online.
When Chen tried to check the account, she found herself blocked. She had to use a friend’s profile to uncover the fraud.
The influencer was shocked to learn that Jiang had been faking her identity for more than 2 years. She has been working as Chen’s personal assistant for six years.
According to Chen, Jiang first approached her as a fan and pleaded for financial help. Instead of giving money, Chen offered her a job, a steady income and a chance to learn new media skills.
Chen trained Jiang fully. She needed to work only for a few days a month. It also allowed her to take other jobs. When Jiang recently requested leave to care for her injured father, Chen also sent financial support.
One social media user reacted, “I am shocked that she went as far as using AI to steal her employer’s photographs.”
“She was so vain that she worked so hard to pretend to be someone else, and so stupid to ignore the fact that nothing remains a secret on the internet,” SCMP quoted another user as commenting.
Influencer’s reaction
The influencer said the discovery had left her deeply hurt and betrayed. After the confrontation, Jiang admitted she had acted wrongly “out of vanity”.
Chen first chose not to pursue legal action. She asked Jiang to apologize publicly and return the money earned from the fake livestream.
Jiang initially agreed but later refused to do it. She blocked Chen and denied most claims, admitting only limited misuse of photos and clothing.
Chen has now issued a lawyer’s notice accusing Jiang of violating her image, reputation and privacy rights. The case may also involve possible offenses such as embezzlement and fraud under Chinese law.
