Executive Summary

Comparison between

Aug–Sep 2023 and May–Jun 2023

Safety and security discussions in Malaysia dropped by 48% in August–September, with posts decreasing from 17.3K to 9.0K. The decline resulted from fewer discussions on new scam tactics during that period. Notable scams in May–June included a fake delivery text and a wedding-invite app scam. In August–September, public figures discussed online scam justice, bank service disruption raised security concerns, and phishing warnings were issued.

Payment Methods conversation decreased by 42%, with online bank transfers, prepaid cards and digital wallets seeing the largest declines (53%, 56% and 65%, respectively). Fraud Type conversation decreased by 61%, with card cloning discussion decreasing the least (32%). Fraud Prevention discussions decreased by 50%, whereas data privacy discussions decreased the least (35%). These decreases were likely caused by a decrease in retweets/replies and discussions during this period compared to the last.

Older citizens were a notably vulnerable group in May – June, as identity theft and phishing scams often targeted them. This theme was also discussed in August – September, with one Twitter user (9.3K followers) noting how complex the online security world is for older people. The post referred to older people as lonelier, making them more susceptible to online scams. 

1. Conversations on Safety and Security

In Safety and Security discussions, a public figure initiated a conversation on the justice system's approach to online scams. The top discussion drivers within this conversation were as follows: a) A bank's web and app services being disrupted; b) A warning by a bank alerting consumers to a phishing email scam that was sent out under their name; c) A phone scam, where the scammer impersonated a bank agent, which cost the victim RM200K. Among the content generating the most engagement were posts highlighting and reacting to the following three things: a) Deceptive phishing emails; b) A Chinese film depicting online scams; and c) a UN report on human trafficking linked to online fraud. Separately, the launch of the Malaysia Online Scam Shield (MOSS) organisation generated limited attention from the public.

2. Safety and Security of different payment methods

Payment Methods conversations decreased 42% compared to the previous period. This could be explained by the lack of viral posts in August – September, while there were some in the last period. Credit card conversation dominated (68%), with users expressing concerns about security and reliability due to bugs in banking apps and online access issues. Users were unable to use their credit cards when there were these bugs and access issues, which led to anxiety. Banks introduced enhanced security measures through new app versions. Some discussions also highlighted older people's challenges in managing online banking.

3. Types of fraud techniques

Conversations about Fraud Types decreased by 61%, primarily due to a lack of viral tweets and fewer major news stories compared to the previous period. Discussions focused on identity theft/phishing. A common theme was phishing emails that impersonated banks’ IT departments and told recipients their accounts were locked for security reasons. Other tactics which sparked conversation included malware downloads, phone scams, and the coercive techniques used by scammers. News outlets reported on online fraud statistics shared by a government agency. The statistics pointed to 2,079 reports, totalling RM71.85 million in losses. E-commerce was the category in which the highest value frauds were executed, followed by fake investments, phone scams, fake job offers and fake loans.

4. Fraud prevention

Compared to May – June, Fraud Prevention conversations decreased by half, with discussions focused more on data privacy. The decrease could be attributed to the reduced engagement on forums such as lowyat.net, where long fraud discussions were featured in May – June. This shift was driven by announcements of business innovations related to identity verification and customer data protection. Consumers raised concerns about data protection practices when opening bank accounts or purchasing SIM cards. Some also expressed disappointment in their bank's responses to fraud, including alleged fees for investigating suspicious transactions.