《TAIPEI TIMES》Phishing cases on rise, CIB says - 焦點- 自由時報電子報

Actor Harry Chang, second left, and Criminal Investigation Bureau Deputy Commissioner Chiu Shao-chou, center, and other officials hold placards at a news conference at the bureau in Taipei on Tuesday. Photo: CNA

SUSPICIOUS E-MAILS:Scammers often attempt to trick people with claims of tax refunds, winning lottery invoices or unpaid traffic fines, the police agency said

Total losses due to fraud declined last month, but reports of phishing rose substantially, with 505 cases and NT$54.51 million （US$1.71 million） in total losses reported, the National Police Agency’s Criminal Investigation Bureau （CIB） said on Tuesday.

In the same period last year, there were 253 cases and NT$13.05 million of losses due to phishing, data from the CIB’s 165 Anti-Fraud Hotline and online reporting Web site showed.

There were 10,652 telecommunications and Internet fraud cases reported nationwide last month, with losses surpassing NT$4 billion, compared with more than NT$6 billion during the same period last year, it said.

Total reports fell by 22.3 percent and losses by 35.1 percent, it added.

The public should be wary of suspicious links and remember to “pause, check and then act,” the CIB said at a campaign event headlined by actor Harry Chang （張懷秋）.

Scammers often send e-mails impersonating e-commerce platforms, government agencies, financial services or logistics companies, and lead people to click phishing links with claims of tax refunds, winning lottery invoices or unpaid traffic fines, it said.

Once clicked, the links can allow scammers to steal data, including credit card information, it said.

Recent phishing cases have tended to be fake telecommunications and transportation payment notifications claiming that points or rewards were to expire or that parking fees had not been paid, it said.

Other common methods include impersonating retailers on online shopping platforms such as Shopee and Momo with claims of abnormal orders, refunds, duplicate orders or membership information update requirements, it said.

Scammers might also falsely advertise themselves as travel or immigration application services such as Thailand’s Digital Arrival Card, the Electronic System for Travel Authorization in the US or the UK’s Electronic Travel Authorization, it added.

Phishing e-mails or URLs usually contain words that are similar to what official channels use, the CIB said, adding that people should close pages that seem suspicious and open official sites via a manual or by typing the correct URL, or they should official customer service to verify claims, it said.

The public should also be on alert for Web sites directing them to speak with online customer service accounts on the Line messaging app and not take directions to use online banking, make ATM transfers, conduct cardless withdrawals or scan QR codes to transfer funds, it said.

不用抽 不用搶 現在用APP看新聞 保證天天中獎 點我下載APP 按我看活動辦法

《TAIPEI TIMES》Prescription needed for foreign weight loss injections: FDA

《TAIPEI TIMES》Politicization of defense spending raises concern

《TAIPEI TIMES》 TSMC’s Germany venture hits …

《TAIPEI TIMES》 Taiwan ranks 7th in civil pa…

《TAIPEI TIMES》 Police post reward for the a…

《TAIPEI TIMES》 Up to 100,000 in Taiwan spyi…