There will be five additional measures that will be undertaken by the banking industry to combat financial scams, says Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Tan Sri Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus.

The Governor announced this at a virtual exhibition by BNM Museum and Art Gallery launched by the central bank and the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP).

The ‘Financial Crime Exhibition’ was held to educate members of the public against financial scams.

The exhibition lays out various types of financial crimes seen in Malaysia and how they have evolved over time. It features interactive exhibits that allow the public to simulate financial scam scenarios.

Through the various exhibits, the public will be able to learn strategies – Spot, Stop, and Share (3S) – to protect themselves and others from becoming victims.

The five measures that will be implemented include the migration of SMS One Time Passwords (OTP) to a more secure form of authentication.

Secondly, there will be further tightening of detection rules and triggers for the blocking of scams-related transactions.

Banks will also be subjecting first-time enrolments of online banking services and secure devices to a cooling-off period.

Additionally, customers will be restricted to one mobile device or secure device for the authentication of online banking transactions.

Lastly, banks will be required to set up dedicated scam hotlines.

“Together with the financial industry, BNM will continue to ensure that banking and payment channels remain secure and equipped with the latest security controls. The effort to combat financial crimes also requires the support of all parties.

 

As consumers, each of us are responsible for protecting ourselves from the threat of scams. Our hope is that the Financial Crime Exhibition can help in this effort to educate members of the public in protecting themselves against scams.”

The Governor added that BNM continues to highlight on latest scams-related information through the Amaran Scam Facebook page.

The public is advised to safeguard their personal information and avoid downloading files or applications from unverified sources onto mobile devices.

Account holders who encounter suspicious transactions involving their bank accounts should immediately notify their banks, contact the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) Scam Response Centre at 03-2610 1559/1599 or BNMTELELINK at 1-300-88-5465; and lodge a police report to facilitate the investigation.