NETIZENS have strongly called on the relevant authorities to increase crackdowns and awareness of the growing number of online scams in the country.
This follows the recent shocking incident in Desa ParkCity where a father allegedly killed his wife and two children at a condominium.
The incident was apparently triggered after the man found out his wife was believed to be involved in a love scam syndicate that resulted in losses and debts reaching RM260,000.
Police found a knife and a pair of gloves believed to be linked to the murder at the scene.
Netizens who took to the comment sections of various reports claim that scammers were becoming increasingly daring and have also expressed concern over how personal data is being leaked out.
"How is it that scammers know who the perfect victims are to target? They seem to know when a person reaches 55 and is entitled to his EPF.
"They seem to know who the lonely, aged and vulnerable are. There must be some flaw in the system which makes such information so easily accessible," read one comment.
Another netizen voiced concern over the growing number of illegal loan sharks, which he claimed were also becoming increasingly brave.
"Many are pushed into a corner and even contemplate taking their own lives because of the pressure from taking loans.
"Penalties for illegal lending activities need to be enhanced to serve as a stronger deterrent," the comment read.
Many shared personal experiences of being almost scammed, while others admitted to falling victim to such scams.
"There are an increasing number of love scams these days. Of late, there have been reports of the elderly being the main targets.
"Something must be done to curb these illegal activities before more fall victim and end up taking drastic actions like in the Desa ParkCity case," said a netizen.
According to the Home Ministry, Malaysia’s losses from online fraud have surged sharply over the past three years, rising from RM1.57 billion in 2024 to RM2.97 billion in 2025 and reaching RM830 million in the first five months of 2026. – August 29, 2026
