adminPETALING JAYA, Aug 20 (Bernama) — Online scams have been detected shifting to messaging services such as Rich Communication Services (RCS) and iMessage to spread phishing links following the enforcement of hyperlink restrictions on short messaging service (SMS).
Selangor Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) Telecommunications Fraud deputy director Mohd Amirul Hakim Abdul Rahim said the shift was detected as these messaging services still allowed the transmission of hyperlinks to users for phishing purposes.
Besides RCS and iMessage, phishing links are also being spread through over-the-top (OTT) services such as WhatsApp and Telegram.
“For SMS, MCMC has enforced a directive for telecommunications companies prohibiting hyperlinks, requests to call back numbers or requests for personal details through official SMS… so they (scammers) shifted to RCS and iMessage.
“Accordingly, MCMC will engage with these platform providers to explore measures that can be implemented, including approaches similar to the restrictions applied to SMS,” he said when appearing as a panellist at the ‘National Digital Scam Forum: Threat to National Financial Security and Mule Accounts’ here today.
The forum was held in conjunction with the 2026 National Anti-Scam Awareness Programme launched by Communications Minister Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil.
Besides the MCMC representative, the forum featured National Financial Crime Centre (NFCC) director-general Datuk Seri Shamshun Baharin Mohd Jamil, Selangor Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) chief SAC Mohamad Rosni Mohamed Lazim and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) LINK and Offices Department (JLPB) deputy director Hasjun Hashim as panellists.
Meanwhile, Mohd Amirul said that for content suspected of containing fraudulent elements, such as illegal investments or impersonation of financial institutions, MCMC would verify it with relevant agencies before taking action to block or take down the content.
He said investment-related cases would be referred to the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), while cases involving banking would be verified with BNM or the relevant banking institutions.
He added that if the content or account was confirmed to be linked to fraudulent activity, blocking action would be taken against the affected channels, including messaging, cellular or SMS services, to prevent it from reaching users.
Meanwhile, Hasjun advised the public to remain vigilant against scam syndicates tricking individuals into opening companies as part of tactics related to mule accounts.
She said opening an account online, particularly with digital banks, was subject to the electronic Know Your Customer (e-KYC) process to verify the applicant’s identity using identification documents and facial recognition.
“Now their modus operandi is to tell (victims) to open a company. For digital banks, account opening is indeed done online because they do not have branches, but there is a process that must be carried out through e-KYC.
“That process is to ensure that the individual opening the account is really that person, and the process is supposed to be very strict,” she said.
Hasjun said individuals who found that a bank account has been opened without their presence or consent should lodge a complaint with the bank concerned to enable an investigation into the account opening process.
She said every bank and insurance company had a dedicated complaints unit to handle cases that could not be resolved at the branch or service centre level.
“If you do not get a satisfactory answer or do not receive a response from the bank after 14 days, you can come to Bank Negara,” she said.
— BERNAMA
