Gold bracelets at a gold jewelry store in the Zhejiang Province of China.
Thousands of people in China have been duped into forking out money on "fake gold" — inferior or artificial gold — after trying to purchase so-called "999 gold" online, according to the government.
The purest form of gold is commonly referred to as 999 gold, because it has gold content of 99.9%.
"Fake gold is becoming a major problem in China as more Chinese are looking to put their savings into gold," said China Market Research Group's Managing Director Shaun Rein.
Fake gold gets darker or reveals a greenish color when placed under flame, while pure gold turns brighter on exposure to heat.
Persons:
Shaun Rein, Nikos Kavalis, Rein, Taobao, Pinduoduo
Organizations:
Visual China, Getty, Research, India, World Gold, Metals, ChinaFotoPress
Locations:
Zhejiang Province, China, scammers, Nantong