‘Not me’: Magda Szubanski warns against social media scam

National treasure and comedy icon Magda Szubanski has cautioned against fake medical fundraisers and news stories made in her image.

On Saturday afternoon, the Kath & Kim star took to Instagram to confirm a series of images circulating on social media are illegitimate, and warned supporters not to donate to fundraisers from unofficial channels.

“Ok. Dear peeps. This lovely lady- whoever she is - is not me,” Szubanski wrote.

“I hope she’s doing well. But please don’t think it’s me and DEFINITELY DO NOT DONATE MONEY TO ANY MEDICAL FUNDRAISER THAT PURPORTS TO BE ME!! If you want the real me you can always find me here. Otherwise- it’s a scam.”

In May last year, the 64-year-old revealed she had been diagnosed with stage four Mantle Cell Lymphoma, a rare form of blood cancer. She is currently undergoing treatment in Melbourne with The Nordic Protocol, which combines chemotherapy and immunotherapy.

The images appear to be AI-generated and to have been circulating on social media platforms for the past few days with false updates regarding Szubanski’s health.

One, posted on Facebook by an account called Celebrity Buzz Today on January 15, bears the caption: “GOOD NEWS AND AN EMOTIONAL UPDATE. After receiving overwhelming hospital support from thousands of fans, Magda Szubanski has finally shared a new update on her health today. ‘I am fighting. But I cannot do it alone. My current health condition is …’”

Szubanski has not posted any health updates since August last year, when she posted an emotional video from hospital on Instagram.

In it, she thanked a young fan for lifting her spirits while admitting “chemo is smacking me around”.

In her latest Instagram post, Szubanski confirmed all real updates pertaining to her and her health could be found on her official social media channels, and that any outside these were “scams”.

Szubanski has been contacted for comment.

Australians can report scams to ScamWatch.

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