KUALA LUMPUR: The National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) received 19,438 calls related to online scams throughout last month with RM2.408bil of victims’ funds successfully frozen before they could be siphoned off.
Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah said of the amount, RM321.3mil or 13% had been successfully returned to victims through the refund process.
“Although the percentage is small, the data emphasises how important it is for victims to take swift action to report cases within the ‘golden period’ of under 24 hours.
“We need to spread this information. Victims should report within 24 hours to ensure their money can at least be blocked although the process of getting it back may take some time,” he said during the Dewan Rakyat Special Chamber session yesterday, Bernama reported.
He was responding to Bakri MP Tan Hong Pin who asked about efforts to address mule account syndicates through phased control of outgoing funds.
Elaborating further, Shamsul Anuar said if reports are made late, the likelihood of successfully blocking the funds is lower as the money would usually have been transferred or withdrawn in multiple layers by the syndicate.
“If victims lodge a report immediately after realising they have been scammed and contact the 997 hotline, the chances of identifying, tracing and blocking the funds are higher,” he said.
According to Shamsul Anuar, NSRC’s capability had been strengthened through the establishment of the National Fraud Portal to expedite fund tracking and detection of mule accounts, including through data integration and the use of predictive analytics.
In this regard, he advised the public to refer to Bank Negara’s Financial Consumer Alert List, the Securities Commission’s Investor Alert List and the police’s Semak Mule portal before making any money transfers or investments.
The deputy minister also said a total of 218,307 accounts had been identified between 2023 and 2025 with 46,433 accounts recorded in 2023, 51,302 in 2024 and 87,209 in 2025.
“This reflects increasingly strengthened detection and enforcement actions in efforts to curb the misuse of bank accounts for online scams,” he said.
He added that the police continuously takes action against owners or custodians of mule accounts, including arrests, investigations, prosecutions, as well as account freezing and asset seizures in accordance with the law.
