AN illegal syndicate allegedly involving officers from the Immigration Department (JIM) exploited specialised USB dongles and fake user identities to compromise Malaysia's Immigration System (MyIMMs), resulting in the unlawful approval of more than 1,300 Temporary Employment Visit Passes (PLKS) and an estimated RM2.4 million in losses to the government.
Immigration Director-General Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said the USB dongle was the key component that enabled the syndicate to infiltrate the MyIMMs system, with Immigration officers allegedly working in collusion with external agents.
He said the operation was uncovered in May following intelligence gathering and investigations by JIM.
"Following that, JIM, together with CyberSecurity Malaysia (CSM), began intelligence gathering and investigations, which also involved the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC)," he was quoted as saying by Harian Metro.
Zakaria said agents supplied the USB dongles to the officers, who connected the devices to their office computers before creating fake user identities to process and approve PLKS applications.
"After that, they would create fake IDs and begin the process of approving PLKS applications using those fake identities.
"So, without the dongle, the syndicate's activities could not have been carried out, and we have confirmed the involvement of the officers in these acts," he said.
He added that investigations were ongoing and declined to disclose further details of the syndicate's methods to avoid compromising the probe.
In a parallel investigation, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) dismantled the hacking syndicate under Ops Crack, arresting 12 suspects believed to have been involved in the illegal processing and approval of PLKS applications.
MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Abd Halim Aman said those detained comprised two company directors, three foreign nationals, four Immigration officers, two officers from JIM's Information Technology Division and one police officer.
The suspects, aged between their 30s and 40s, were arrested between 2pm and 5pm on Tuesday at the MACC headquarters and the Penang Immigration Department.
Preliminary investigations found that the syndicate exploited unused PLKS quotas from 2011 without paying the required levy.
"A total of 1,306 fraudulent PLKS were issued, causing estimated losses of RM2.4 million to the government," Abd Halim said.
He said the operation stemmed from months of intelligence sharing between the MACC Intelligence Division and JIM Intelligence Division, with investigations conducted across the Klang Valley and Penang since May.
The operation was also supported by CyberSecurity Malaysia, Telekom Malaysia and the MACC Technology Forensics Division.
Searches were conducted at company premises as well as Immigration Department offices in Penang and Putrajaya as part of the investigation.
The case is being investigated under Sections 17(a) and 16(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009. - July 30, 2026
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