Never share one-time passwords. Verify suspicious calls through “hotlines”. Ignore offers that sound too good to be true. Safeguard personal data and use secure networks. Report fraudsters to the authorities and the National Scam Response Centre at 997.
These were the main points brought up by Assistant Commissioner (ACP) Lai Lee Ching, who is principal assistant director (Strategic Planning) in the police’s Commercial Crime Investigation Department during a keynote lecture on scam awareness in Kuala Lumpur.
The community service programme was aimed at raising public awareness on the various scam tactics employed by fraudsters.
It was organised by Selangor and Federal Territory Hainan Association’s (Sftha) economic bureau and the British Graduates Association Malaysia (Bgam), an alumni association.
Some 500 participants attended the talk.
During a panel discussion, Bgam president and former Johor police chief Datuk Kamarudin Md Ali revealed that RM1.6bil had been lost due to online scams in Malaysia last year.
One way to safeguard against such threats is to maintain strong passwords and avoid clicking on links without scrutinising their authenticity, said forensic computing specialist Eugene Teow.
He advised that devices should also be restarted daily to flush out unauthorised processes, while app permissions should be reviewed regularly to disable unnecessary access.
Sftha’s economic bureau head Andy Lee made the opening remarks while Kamarudin and Sftha deputy president Datuk Seri Foo Sae Hing officiated the event.
Malaysia Press Institute president Datuk Yong Soo Heong moderated the panel discussion.
