Almost RM40mil lost to scams since October 2022

PETALING JAYA: Chee (not his real name) became part of Malaysian online scam statistics recently when he bought some clothes online.

He lost almost RM5,000 after conducting a transaction through a link sent by a supposed apparel seller on social media for a deal that he admitted was too good to be true.

“The price was just so promising, and the seller then sent a link to my mobile number for transaction purposes.

“Upon checking my account, I saw that I lost a substantial amount of money and realised I had been cheated,” he said.

On Feb 15, Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said (pic) told the Dewan Rakyat that over 16,000 Malaysians reported online scams and losses to the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) since the hotline began in October 2022.

In a written reply to Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh (PH-Ledang), the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) said that losses amounted to RM39,299,158.25.

The formation of the NSRC was announced in Budget 2023 last year by then Finance minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.

The NSRC is a joint effort by the National Anti-Financial Crime Centre, the police, Bank Negara Malaysia, the Malaysian Commu-nications and Multimedia Com-mission as well as financial institutions and the telecommunications industry.

It focuses on online financial scams which occur when victims notice unauthorised transactions from their bank account and instances where victims are tricked into transferring funds via online financial services.

Victims can lodge complaints through its 997 hotline which is operated daily.