KUCHING, June 11: A bank manager has allegedly lost RM17,325 in yet another case of internet banking transaction fraud, according to Democratic Action Party (DAP) Sarawak chief Chong Chieng Jen.
Chong said for this case, the bank manager himself is the victim and it involves the unauthorised use of his credit card for internet transactions with online shopping platform Shopee. The bank manager is also the holder of a credit card issued by another bank, Ambank Berhad.
“Sometime in January, 2022, he received messages that his credit card was used for three internet purchases at the Shopee website for a total sum of RM17,325 and that if he had not performed such transactions, he should call up Ambank to stop the transactions.
“He then called Ambank to stop the transactions. Thereafter, he lodged a police report on the fraudulent transactions and physically filed in a dispute form with Ambank.
“Despite his prompt action and complying with all the bank’s Standard of Procedures, Ambank refused to annul the transactions and continues to charge interest on the unauthorised and illegal purchases,” said Chong who is Padungan assemblyman.
He said five months after the disputed transaction, the bank still refuses to annul the transactions.
Chong who is also Stampin MP claimed that many bank customers and credit card holders are now faced with these unauthorised and fraudulent transactions.
“The directive issued by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) two days ago ordering banks to compensate their customers is very vague (and) seems non-committal. Unless BNM is quick to act on the directive, public confidence in our country’s internet banking security system will collapse,” said Chong.
He point out that so far, the Minister of Finance has been keeping quiet and has not taken any proactive action on the matter.
“This is the 4th case that I received complaint about in less than a month, and this time the victim is a bank manager.
“If a person who is in the system can also be victimised by internet banking fraud, who can be spared of such fraud?
“Therefore, the Ministry of Finance and the cabinet must come together and act immediately to resolve the matter and restore public confidence in our internet banking system,” said Chong.
A string of such cases have been highlighted by Chong and DAP in recent weeks, whereby users have reportedly lost large sums of money from their bank accounts without being notified.
Users have been advised against revealing their bank account details to unauthorised sources and to take extra precaution when installing suspicious apps that may contain malware on their devices, which could compromise their privacy. — DayakDaily
