Naivety of ‘Macau scam’ victims baffling
> People do not double-check with police, financial institutions: CPO
PETALING JAYA: Police are puzzled over why victims of the so-called “Macau” scams do not refer to the police or bank authorities before parting with their money.
“These scammers use several ways to fool victims. Do not panic and blindly follow instructions given by the caller without first calling the police or financial institutions.
“If every person verifies these calls with the nearest police station or bank, the scammers would go out of business,” Selangor police chief Commissioner Datuk Mazlan Mansor told reporters after disposing illegal gambling computer units at Ara Damansara police station yesterday.
His call follows a growing number of cases involving people fooled by callers claiming to be from financial institutions or local enforcement agencies.
Mazlan said the state has recorded 228 cases so far this year with losses amounting to RM7 million.
In 2016, the state recorded some 210 such cases with losses amounting to RM17 million.
The scammers usually call a victim pretending to be police personnel, saying that the victim’s family member had been arrested but a payment can secure the person’s release.
According to Mazlan, this modus operandi known as spoofing is a technique where a caller will communicate using a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP).
He advised the public to be wary of unidentified people trying to contact them and not to fall for the ruse.
At the event, Mazlan said police will dispose RM2.3 million worth of computer units modified into gambling machines and 41 simulators.
Mazlan said police had obtained a court order to destroy the 3,885 units of gambling machines which were confiscated in anti-illegal gambling operations last year.