Chili Sauce Scam Too Hot for Tencent

Tencent was feeling the heat online after getting stiffed for millions in a chili-inspired advertising con. In 2019, the Chinese tech giant sealed a deal with three people posing as marketing managers for the popular chili sauce Lao Gan Ma. Tencent included ads reportedly worth 16 million yuan (US$2.3m) for the brand in its mobile games, but was never paid. The incident flew under the radar until Tencent filed a lawsuit. Lao Gan Ma claimed no knowledge of the contract and contacted authorities. According to a police statement, the three suspects said they had forged contract stamps and intended to profit by selling off the virtual game accounts Tencent gifted to its advertising clients. While some netizens had fun taking pot shots at Tencent for letting down its guard, some suggested that Lao Gan Ma couldn’t have been completely in the dark about the incident, as expensive ad campaigns would involve many departments.