According to statistics from the Criminal Police Department of Ho Chi Minh City Police, nearly VND 1 trillion (nearly $40 million) in losses from online fraud was reported in the first nine months of this year.

At a seminar on December 18 on "Enhancing capabilities to combat financial crimes in cyberspace," Senior Lieutenant Colonel Doi Ngoc Thang, Deputy Head of the Criminal Police Department (PC02) of Ho Chi Minh City Police, disclosed that 461 cases of online fraud were reported during the period.

Although the number of reported cases decreased by 282 compared to the same period last year, the total financial damage remained high, reaching VND 982 billion. The Criminal Police Department initiated prosecutions in 242 cases. However, investigative efforts face significant challenges, with only two cases involving four suspects being resolved so far, Thang revealed.

Senior Lieutenant Colonel Thang stated that the majority of the reports - 267 cases - involved schemes recruiting people as collaborators for e-commerce platforms to earn commissions or as child photo models. This was followed by fraudulent invitations to invest in unlicensed stock trading platforms, cryptocurrencies, and foreign exchange, accounting for 102 cases.

Other prevalent scams included impersonating government authorities, hacking social media accounts to impersonate relatives and borrow money, and unlicensed cryptocurrency platforms aggressively marketing to lure participants.

Thang noted that, on average, victims lost around VND 5 billion per case, often comprising personal funds or money borrowed from others. He stressed the severe impact these scams have on victims’ financial and emotional well-being, causing family conflicts, strained relationships, and, in extreme cases, violence or suicide.

In one instance, victims who had borrowed money to invest but were unable to repay faced threats and disputes. In others, victims took their own lives due to overwhelming financial pressures.

Dam De