Take precautionary steps to avoid falling prey to scams, says community leader

KENINGAU (March 15): Taking simple precautionary steps such as refraining from immediately responding to unknown calls can help the public avoid falling prey to phone scams.

Keningau Hakka Association president Kapitan Anthony Chong said public awareness of digital safety is crucial, particularly to protect the elderly who are often targeted by scam syndicates.

According to him, family members and the wider community should play a role in educating senior citizens to be more cautious when receiving suspicious calls or messages.

“When the public becomes more vigilant and reminds one another, we can protect ourselves, our families, and our community from becoming victims of cyber fraud,” he said in a statement on Sunday.

He added that if a call was genuinely important, the caller would usually introduce themselves clearly or call again later, while acquaintances or friends can explain their purpose when contacted afterwards.

Chong cited advice from Cyber Intelligence consultant Teh Chuan Khoon published in a newspaper report that scam syndicates often impersonate police officers, bank officials or government agency representatives to intimidate victims into revealing personal information, passwords or banking security codes.

Teh also advised the public not to open suspicious links received through SMS, email or messaging apps, as they may contain malware designed to steal sensitive information such as banking login details and one-time password (OTP) codes.

In addition, users are reminded not to download Android application installation files (APK) from unknown sources as they may contain malware capable of accessing data stored on smartphones.

Teh noted that although some websites may appear official and display secure connections, scammers are still able to create convincing fake websites.

The public is also encouraged to regularly monitor bank and credit card transactions to ensure any suspicious activity can be detected at an early stage.