The Ministry of the Interior yesterday urged the public to be alert to suspicious text messages received via SMS or instant messaging applications such as Line, as losses from text message and Internet fraud reached more than NT$540 million (US$17 million) in the first five months of the year.
“From January to May, a total of 2,612 cases of text message fraud were reported, with total losses reaching more than NT$514 million,” Minister of the Interior Chen Wei-jen (陳威仁) told a press conference at the ministry.
“During the same period, there were 1,585 reported cases of Internet fraud, 80 percent of which were made through the instant messaging application Line, with total losses amounting to more than NT$30 million,” he said.
Compared with the same period last year, the number of text message fraud cases jumped 105.67 percent, while Internet fraud surged 135.51 percent, Chen said.
“Most of these fraudulent messages contain a link, and if you click on it, it would copy your personal information and send messages to your friends [on the contact list],” he said. “It [the link] would them ask you and your friends to purchase online game points that you can redeem for cash.”
“I’ve actually received such text messages a couple of times, asking me to click on a link to claim a package meant for me,” he said. “I have been cautious enough not to click on the link and forwarded the messages to the Criminal Investigation Bureau instead.”
Chen urged the public to refrain from clicking on links in messages sent by unknown people, not add unfamiliar people as friends on Line and set their Line account as private to avoid becoming a victim of fraud.
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