Online scams caused an estimated VND 18.9 trillion in losses for Vietnamese citizens in 2024, according to the National Cybersecurity Association (NCA). Among every 220 smartphone users, one fell victim to fraud.

Three most common types of online scams

The NCA’s 2024 Cybersecurity Report was recently released, based on an online survey of nearly 60,000 participants conducted by the association’s Technology Committee between November 28 and December 14.

The report highlights that online scams remain rampant, impacting hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese citizens and leaving severe consequences throughout the year.

According to the survey, 0.45% of smartphone users - roughly one in every 220 people - fell victim to online scams in 2024. The estimated total loss amounted to VND 18.9 trillion.

Despite the large number of victims, only a small percentage managed to recover their lost funds. While 88.98% of respondents reported warning friends or family immediately after being scammed, only 45.69% filed reports with authorities—a relatively low rate.

Fraudulent tactics and technological sophistication

Fraudsters used a variety of sophisticated methods to target victims in 2024, with three tactics standing out: Luring victims into fake investment schemes promising high returns; Impersonating organizations or government agencies; Sending deceptive notifications about winning prizes or major promotions.

The survey found that: 70.72% of respondents received investment offers from dubious financial platforms that claimed to be risk-free and guaranteed high profits.

62.08% encountered calls from individuals impersonating organizations or officials, coercing victims to install software or transfer money to prove their innocence in alleged legal violations.

60.01% reported receiving suspicious prize-winning or promotional messages with vague, abnormal details.

Fraudsters also deployed advanced technologies, including deepfake videos and audio to fake identities and build trust, automated tools to maintain continuous communication with victims, and specialized software to simultaneously target multiple individuals.

“The use of high-tech tools often makes it difficult for victims to distinguish between real and fake content, increasing their vulnerability to scams,” an NCA expert explained.

The expert emphasized the importance of reporting scams to law enforcement to protect victims’ rights and deter illegal activities. Prompt reporting enables authorities to gather evidence, investigate, and track down perpetrators. It may also help victims recover some or all of their stolen assets, especially when interventions are swift enough to freeze illicit funds.

Mr. Vu Ngoc Son, head of the NCA Technology Committee, advised users to remain vigilant and practice safe online habits: Avoid sharing personal information with unverified individuals or services; Carefully verify calls or messages requesting money transfers.
Use anti-scam applications, such as nTrust, to filter fraudulent phone numbers and block malicious websites; Alarming data leaks: 66% of users affected.

The report also revealed that data breaches in Vietnam remained a significant issue in 2024, with 66.24% of users reporting unauthorized use of their personal information.

The primary causes of data leaks include: 74%: Information provided during online shopping; 62.13%: Data shared on social media; 67%: Information collected through services like hotels and supermarkets.

Hackers frequently combine leaked personal data with technologies like AI to craft convincing scam scenarios, exploiting victims’ psychological vulnerabilities.

The NCA warned users to limit sharing sensitive personal information on social media and to thoroughly verify websites and businesses before providing data. They also recommended: Using strong, unique passwords for each account; Enabling two-factor authentication to enhance security.
 

Van Anh