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Scammers prey only on the lovelorn and the faint-hearted


‘Stop being gullible’

BY NATASHA JEE

KUCHING: Stories of victims losing their life’s savings to scams don’t seem to make people any wiser.

It almost becomes a daily occurrence that some gullible soul will be telling the police she (apparently, most victims are women) has been cheated of cash by someone she has known through the social media. That’s now known as love scam.

Or, a victim comes to the police saying she has lost money in trying to avoid investigation by ‘investigator’ into supposed money laundering activities. This is Macau scam.

Sarawak Community Policing Association (SCPA) chairman Datuk John Lau Pang Heng said Sarawakians must stop being gullible and avoid dealing with those so-called officers over phone calls or in the social media.

Lau said they should instead go straight to the authorities concerned.

“Love scam has become a social concern in modern society.  It was reported in the first quarter of 2019 that love scam victims have lost RM27,830,592 in Malaysia.

“In 2018, 1,709 love scam victims lost RM110,720,866 as compared to 2017, where 2,271 victims lost RM95,983,756. Love scam has become an increasing concern of the authority and our society.

“Based on my study, people in the age group of 31 to 40 are busy focusing on their career and have little time to meet potential suitors,” he said.

He added that scammers rely on social media like Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp to target their victims.

“The scammer has prepared scripts when talking with potential victims. Sometimes, they use technology to talk to their victims to lure these victims to fall for them.”

He advised the public to be extra careful when using the social media to befriend someone whom they have never met face to face.

“Personally, yesterday, I received a call from a foreign registered phone. The caller told me that I have registered for a profit venture business in their website.

“Knowing it was strange and I have never registered myself in any online profit business, I asked the caller, is this a scam? The caller immediately cut the phone,” he said.

Besides love scam, many have been scammed by people who presented themselves as an officer from a bank or the police.

“Scammers normally phone their potential victims, telling the victim that he or she has unpaid fine, tax or unpaid bills and that the authority is taking action against him or her.

“Please do not panic when you receive this type of calls. In a short moment, ask the caller for his or her name and his or her phone number.

“If they refuse to identify themselves, the possibility is that it is a scam call,” he warned.

Even if the caller gives his full information, Lau advised the people to tell the caller that they are busy and that they will call back shortly.

“Normally when you call back, the phone is not reachable, thus you know that it is a scam call.

“Nevertheless, SCPA advises the public not to return a call from any stranger, more so if you suspect the call to be from a scammer.

“Your best option is to lodge a police report. It is your duty to inform the police because you may be helping the gullible from becoming victims,” Lau added.


Special committee to tackle Macau scams

KUCHING: A special committee will be set up by the Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) to tackle issues related to Macau scams.

Based on statistics released by the police’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID), there were 4,500 scam cases using telephone calls and short message services (SMS) with a total loss of RM113.11 million in 2017.

As for the six months of this year, the department received 5,069 reports on cyber crimes involving RM250 million lost to scammers.

In addition to that, 1,973 individuals were arrested for their involvement in cyber scams within the same period this year.

MCPF senior vice-chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye explained that the Cyber Crime Committee will be headed by International Islamic University Professor Dr Mohamad Fauzan and its members include those who have the knowledge and skills in information and communication technology.

“We realise that every day Malaysians have become victims of Macau scams, including government officials and housewives.

“Students and highly-educated people were also not spared, although most of their victims are pensioners who keep their money in banks,” he said in a statement issued yesterday.

Lee added that MCPF was concerned about the ability of Macau scam syndicates to evolve using the latest tactics and devices to make their deception more convincing.

“I myself have lodged a police report when my name was used by a syndicate to raise money from the top official of an organisation that I’m the chairman of. The syndicate contacted the victim using a fake email that looked like mine,” he stated.

He was then informed that some of the syndicates now have professional trainers or coaches who keep on improving their tactics so that it would be very difficult to detect or uncover their scams.

“This proves how professional they are as they are always a few steps ahead of the enforcement agencies,” he mentioned.

Lee noted that the MCPF Cyber Crime Committee would get information and seek cooperation from the police as well as other relevant agencies including CyberSecurity Malaysia to find ways to address the problem more effectively.

“The committee would also plan various programmes and activities to help raise awareness on Macau scams as well as other scams.

“The public must be cautious at all times and always share information with family members and friends when contacted by the syndicate, apart from lodging a police report,” he said.

Bukit Aman CCID director Datuk Seri Mohd Zakaria Ahmad stated that since 2015, the department recorded about RM2 billion in losses suffered by victims of commercial crimes including Macau scams and non-existent loan packages or investment schemes.

Thus, the establishment of a special committee is necessary to educate and spread awareness to the public.

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