Malaysia E-Financial Crime Losses Jump 235%

Losses from e-financial crime in Malaysia surged 235% to RM280.72 million in January to October from RM83.71 million a year earlier, even though cases fell 8%, The Star reported, citing Bukit Aman’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID).

CCID director Comm Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa gave the figures at a press conference on Thursday (Nov 12).

Overall online scam losses fall

Losses from the six main categories of online scams fell 28% to RM1.56 billion in January to October from RM2.16 billion a year earlier, despite a 4% rise in cases to 56,802 from 54,473, Rusdi said.

Fake investment scheme losses fell 52% to RM600.37 million, with cases down 18% to 6,537. Telecommunication crime losses declined 22% to RM480.13 million, with cases down 16% to 19,625. E-commerce scams posted the biggest rise in cases among the six categories, up 56% to 17,635.

Total commercial crime losses rose 30.95% to RM5.25 billion from RM4.01 billion, while cases rose 5.55% to 64,951, according to The Star. Arrests climbed 15.88% to 29,479 and charges rose 52% to 21,342.

Advice to account holders

Rusdi urged the public not to trust calls, messages or investment offers from unknown people and warned against sharing banking details, passwords, one-time passwords (OTPs) or transaction authorisation codes (TACs).

He also urged users to check accounts through the police’s Semak Mule portal and contact the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) at 997, as well as lodge a police report, if they suspected they had been scammed.

Recovery remains low

Home Ministry figures tabled in Parliament showed scam victims have recovered roughly RM14 million since the NSRC began operating, about 1.1% of the RM1.23 billion lost to syndicates over the past decade, Malay Mail reported on Nov 4. From January to August this year, RM9.14 million was confiscated and RM6.67 million returned to victims, it said, while the Semak Mule portal has recorded more than 77 million visitors since October 2020.

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