Opinion | Intensified fight against online fraud in Hong Kong

It was only a matter of time before the huge scourge of online scams reached mainland China's super apps, and warnings about scammers posing as customer service representatives of such companies must be heeded in Hong Kong.

According to police, nearly HK$585 million (US$75 million) was stolen in the first seven months of 2024. One victim lost HK$4.5 million.

About half of the more than 2,700 reported cases of customer service fraud involved scammers pretending to work for messaging platform WeChat and e-commerce giant Taobao. China Mobile was also used to deceive customers.

Many victims were told they had purchased insurance contracts or other services, and were then pressured to quickly “cancel” the bogus orders by providing their bank details and paying a “deposit.” Investigators said some victims never used the platforms mentioned.

It is encouraging that the police arrested more than 100 people in connection with such scams between January and June. The police's Commercial Crime Bureau has also met with app companies and worked with government agencies, banks and other sectors.

Overall, however, telephone scams have been steadily increasing. Last year, the damage in Hong Kong almost doubled to HK$9.18 billion. The number of cases rose by almost 43 percent to 39,824.

A growing number of students from mainland China are also among the victims, and the city now tops the global list of per capita losses caused by fraud.

Of course, individuals need to be more cautious. But banking and financial regulators have faced criticism for failing to stay one step ahead of emerging schemes and schemes, and some politicians have admitted that the City is lagging behind on anti-fraud legislation.

Efforts in other countries are worth considering. Australia is close to requiring banks, digital communications platforms and telecommunications providers to take responsibility for fighting fraud.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore is planning a “shared responsibility” framework in which losses from phishing scams will be borne by banks and telecommunications companies.

Online scammers show no signs of slowing down. The city needs to step up the pace and do everything it can to crack down.