Bank Negara deputy governor Adnan Zaylani (fifth from left) with the PB Scam Ranger team after visiting the bank’s booth during Karnival Celik Kewangan.
A bank’s scam awareness initiative has been touring Malaysia to keep the public up to date about fraudulent schemes.
Public Bank’s PB Scam Ranger initiative features a mobile team of cybersecurity fraud experts who travel around the country to educate the public on the latest scam trends.
A van customised with the campaign’s logo can be seen when the team visits the bank’s branches to conduct educational sessions, quizzes, interactive exhibits and information dissemination for customers and the public.
The PB Scam Ranger team launched in June last year also participated in Business Foresight Forum 2024 at the Securities Commission, National Day celebration in Putrajaya and Karnival Celik Kewangan organised by Bank Negara.
In a media statement, Public Bank managing director and chief executive officer Tan Sri Tay Ah Lek said the bank continued to improve best practices to protect its customers’ accounts.
“This includes working closely with the authorities to address the evolving nature of scams and frauds.
“Customers are reminded to remain vigilant and keep themselves updated on the various modus operandi of scams and frauds,” he said.
The bank said it had managed to protect customers from falling prey to fraudsters.
PB Scam Ranger’s customised van with the campaign’s logo seen at the National Day celebration in Putrajaya.
As of last September, over 1.12 million Public Bank customers or 3.42 million transactions totalling about RM1.65bil were prevented from falling into fraudsters’ mule accounts, it added.
Since the introduction of the transaction cooling-off period, it said, customers’ transactions valued at about RM2.7mil had been prevented from being lost due to scam activities.
The bank also employs a multi-channel approach to educate customers on countering potential threats.
These include utilisation of digital touchpoints such as e-mail campaigns, social media platforms, security alert light boxes as well as online and mobile banking interfaces.
To avoid being scammed, the bank advises customers to never disclose their ID and password.
They should also never call suspicious contact numbers or click on links on social media, e-mails or chats.
The bank also advises customers to not register for financial courses or investment schemes or respond to loan advertisements through social media platforms offering low interest rates.
Customers who notice irregularities in their bank accounts or suspect fraudulent activity can call its 24-hour case management, digital support hotline at 03-2177 3555 or the National Scam Response Centre at 997 between 8am and 8pm.
