KUALA LUMPUR – The movement control order (MCO), brought about by the rise in new Covid-19 cases since last year, is insufficient in reducing the national crime index, especially those involving scams.
According to Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) reports, losses due to scam syndicates increase each year, despite Royal Malaysia Police campaigns to prevent and stop them.
Bukit Aman CCID director Datuk Zainuddin Yaacob said 19,867 scam cases were reported last year, with a total loss of RM786,438,423 – an increase compared with 2019, which reported 17, 074 cases and a total loss of RM727,808,514.
“Three scams that contributed to the rise in losses involve land sale (RM243,558,532), investment (RM183,746,758) and Macau Scams (RM172,676,943).
“In 2019, these three also recorded the highest number of cases,” he said in an interview with Getaran recently.
However, Zainuddin said, online or e-commerce scams showed a significant increase last year, totalling 5,848 cases compared with 3,511 in 2019.
“The total loss has also increased to RM41.2 million from RM28.03 million the previous year.
“This increase happened after the MCO was implemented in March last year, which saw many Malaysians buying goods online, with some falling victim to such scams.
He said this trend opens up a space for scammers, who take advantage of modern technology, such as smartphones, the internet and use of social media platforms.
“If before their modus operandi involves face-to-face meetups, now scammers use only technology.
“Based on our research, those who lack knowledge in using social media are the main victims of such scammers, for example, when it comes to banking applications.”
Zainuddin said in 2019, CCID arrested 8,679 individuals or groups involved in scamming activities, with the highest number of cases involving non-existent loans (2,528).
“Last year, that number increased to 9,816 arrests, with the highest number of cases also involving non-existent loans (3,019).” – The Vibes, February 19, 2021
Additional reporting by Mastura Malak
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