KUALA LUMPUR – According to Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM), Malaysians suffered losses amounting to about RM2.23 billion from cybercrime scams over the last five years.
Statistics from the police reveals that 67,552 cyber scam cases were reported between 2017 till June 20 this year.
Of the total, e-commerce scams topped the chart with 23,011 cases, followed by illegal loans (21,008) and investment scams with 6,273 cases.
The majority of these scams were in relation to e-commerce with 23,011 cases, followed by illegal loans with 21,008 cases and investment scams with 6,273 cases. In fact, one of the biggest scams reported recently was on a 90-year-old woman, who lost RM3.83 million to a phishing scam.
To overcome the concerning rise of cybercrimes in Malaysia, the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) and Facebook Malaysia, in partnership with government agencies, industry players, and consumer associations today launched a nationwide #TakNakScam awareness campaign.
This campaign, which will be ongoing starting from July until September 2021, serves to empower the public by educating them in order to gain a deep understanding of how scams work and how to deal with them.
3 steps to avoid getting scammed
The #TakNakScam campaign wants the public to Spot, Check and Report, in order to stay safe. By educating the public on how to do these three things, they will be safer and more comfortable to thrive in the digital space.
Spotting scams can only be done if you know how to spot them. Learning the different types of schemes used such as phishing, e-commerce, or loan scams will help you identify them before you get affected.
Checking the validity of things you find online is extremely important. By default, you should always be skeptical and if you find something suspicious, check an official fraud list.
Reporting can be done on almost every platform. Even if you get affected, your report will help other people so they don’t get scammed too.
Within three simple steps – spot, check and report, the people can be actively involved in crippling online frauds.
Emphasis was placed on the importance of digital literacy. Since many Malaysians were forced to adapt to the digital world, some simply do not have the knowledge needed to navigate it safely.
Facebook already has a digital literacy program, and plan to introduce modules to schools in the future.
Those who come across any form of suspicious financial fraud may report to the CCID Scam Response Centre between 8am–8pm every day at 03-26101559 and 03-26101599.
Read more: How to Keep Your Financial Data and Personal Information Safe Online
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