Illustration: Peter C. Espina/GT

Guo Meimei, a 23-year-old woman who bogged the Red Cross Society of China in a credibility crisis and aroused myriad social controversies during the past three years, was arrested in July, on suspicion of illegal online betting on the World Cup.

During the investigation, Guo admitted in a "confession" on CCTV that she amassed wealth through illegal gambling, sex trade, and spreading rumors. It has been more than 20 days since her arrest, but the media has still been hotly pushing her story.

Guo shot to infamy in 2011 by claiming that she was a general manager of an organization under the Red Cross and flaunting her wealth and extravagance recklessly.

During the past few years, she kept on posting ostentatious and overly revealing pictures on Weibo, captivating the attention of the public and at the same time infuriating them.

Wang Jun, a businessman from Shenzhen who was known as Guo's "godfather" and turned out to be her "sugar daddy," once bought her a Maserati worth 2.4 million yuan ($388,900) soon after he met her, and paid her monthly upkeep.

According to Wang, he had never seen such a pretentious and vacuous person who seeks after money and reputation unscrupulously, regardless of the consequences.

It was Guo's flaunting of her wealth that mired the Red Cross in a credibility crisis. The largest charity of China was once boycotted by the public, and remains tainted by the scandal to a significant extent today. This humanitarian organization stated that Guo had caused grievous harm to the overall image of China's philanthropy and called for an end to the distraction.

Like many other young girls, Guo is keen on selfies and posting them on her Weibo. She is used to attracting netizens' attention with various designer brands and gaining a pleasant sensation from showing off.

Many people are ostentatious, which will not pose much threat to society if controlled. But regrettably, the peacock mentality running wild is eroding our society and Guo provides a vivid example.

Vanity has actually become a collective mood shrouding the whole of society. Materialism and money worship among an increasing number of Chinese people has also turned China into the largest market for luxury goods in the world. Many Chinese tourists go abroad more for shopping in tax duty-free shops than for sightseeing.

Guo is a representative of this vainglorious group. She has become addicted to showing off her inexplicable wealth on social media and resorting to every expedient to maintain such a glamour-filled life.

Social networks have played an inescapable role in the whole incident, because they helped magnify the vanity of netizens, and therefore became an accomplice in the downfall of the young girl.

Just imagine, if Weibo didn't exist, then Guo would not even have had the excellent stage to display her extravagance, to change her identity willfully, and to become an Internet celebrity overnight.

Her case is a tragedy of the Internet era. It is not disapproval of social networks but a call for such media to reflect on their role in the shocking incident.

The author is a Global Times reporter. wangxiaonan@globaltimes.com.cn