By Ashley Sim
KUCHING, June 21: Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) chairman Chong Chieng Jen highlighted yet another case of unauthorised fund transfers, this time involving a retired civil servant who lost over RM25,000 to online fraud recently, which included over 60 unauthorised transactions from March to June.
According to Chong, the 72-year-old victim discovered early this month that he had lost a significant portion of his retirement savings when he checked his account balance at an automated teller machine (ATM).
“On June 3, 2022, the victim immediately filed a police report, informed the bank, and requested the most recent bank statement, after which the bank began investigating the case,” he said.
He also noted that the unauthorised online transfers ranged from a few ringgit to more than RM6,000 per transaction.
“I believe this is a new modus operandi of online financial fraud, in which they (the perpetrators) transfer a small amount rather than a large sum to avoid detection.
“Thus, I urged all bank account holders to check their accounts frequently, as these incidents have become more prevalent recently,” he stated today at a press conference held at the Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) headquarters (HQ) here.
Chong, who is also the Padungan assemblyman, expressed his disappointment with a number of banks and financial institutions for their “undesirable attitude” in addressing these cases.
He claimed that the majority of banks in the country have been encouraging their customers to use online banking services without ensuring the safety and security of these bank account holders and their savings.
“Banks should be made responsible for these losses caused by unauthorised transactions,” he stressed.
Chong said he would bring up the issue at the next session of Parliament to urge the Finance Ministry to take action against online fraud involving unauthorised transactions.
The victim, who sought assistance at Sarawak DAP HQ today, told reporters that over the previous three months, more than 60 unauthorised transactions, believed to be online transfers, had occurred without his knowledge.
According to the victim, he previously registered and activated his online banking option, however, he has never logged in to his bank account online, nor has he ever made a payment or purchase through online banking. — DayakDaily
