The Hong Kong Police recorded a large spike in fraud cases in the first 5 months of 2023, in the January-May period, namely 58 percent compared to the same period last year. This was conveyed by the police in a press conference on Wednesday (9/8/2023), as stated by RTHK.
There were 15.792 cases of fraud from January to May. More than 75 percent are online scams. Phishing scams accounted for 2.369 cases.
Officers noted that in many incidents, scammers would impersonate a bank, telco, or government agency and send fraudulent text messages, to trick individuals into providing their credit card details. The Office of the Communications Authority said it was working with police and mobile service providers to set up a registration system for SMS senders by the end of this year.
“The scheme is very complex. This will cover the banking industry as well as the telecommunications industry,” said the authority's Manager of Principal Regulatory Affairs, Wilson Lee.
Commercial Crime Bureau Senior Inspector Tsang Nga-sze, for his part, said there is no single solution to this problem. "So we want to raise public awareness to be honest and careful, and never believe what you receive," he said.
The Hong Kong Police have also warned the public to be aware of the potential for fraud in the investment and job vacancy mode.
