Ratanakiri Police Encourage Online Scam Victims to File Complaints

The Anti-Cybercrime Office of the Ratanakiri Provincial Police is strongly encouraging citizens who have fallen victim to online scams to contact their banks immediately to request the blocking or freezing of financial transactions. Following this, they are urged to file complaints with the authorities for investigation, with no service fees charged for filing complaints at the provincial office. The office stated that the police will cooperate with banks to investigate and take legal action against those involved. Mr. Heng Vuttha, Head of Investigation and Legal Procedures at the Ratanakiri Provincial Police's Anti-Cybercrime Office, told "Kampuchea Thmey" that online scams are occurring in various forms, with criminals continuously changing their tactics to deceive and exploit victims. He explained that scamming methods include promises of high profits, sending links embedded with viruses, stealing banking data such as OTP and PIN, fraudulent romance scams, and persuading victims to transfer money. He added that criminals often use social media to identify victims' weaknesses and exploit their emotions, trust, and deception to make them decide without thoroughly verifying information. For those who have transferred money to scammers, Mr. Heng Vuttha advises taking immediate, crucial steps. The first step is to contact the bank they use or call the bank's hotline to request the blocking or freezing of transactions as quickly as possible. Afterward, they should file a complaint at the local police station or the provincial Anti-Cybercrime Office, with no service fees required. He clarified that the authorities will cooperate with banks to investigate account owners involved and take legal action, which may include summons or arrest warrants if evidence of criminal activity is found. Concurrently, he provided key principles for citizens to protect themselves from online scams: "Do not believe immediately, do not transfer money immediately, and verify first." Specifically, social media scams can also occur through the hijacking of victims' Telegram accounts. Once criminals gain control of an account, they can collect information from the contact list and send fake documents or links to friends, colleagues, and acquaintances, tricking them into clicking. When victims click on these documents or links, they may lose control of their accounts and suffer further harm. Victim experience: Ms. Vien, a resident of Ratanakiri province, recounted how she was scammed by individuals using the TikTok account "Selling a car" and the Telegram account "lokkoncar," who posed as car sellers offering a vehicle for only $35. Due to the large number of followers on the account, she felt confident and transferred money to the ABA bank account named "SUONG POLIN." However, after receiving the money, the account holder ceased all communication. Meanwhile, Mr. Kham Kaby, Chief of Kachoun Commune, Vensai District, Ratanakiri Province, also appealed to village chiefs and council members to be cautious after his Telegram account and that of his clerk were hijacked by malicious individuals. He advised them not to click on any links sent from hacked accounts to avoid malware infection and loss of account control. The Ratanakiri Provincial Anti-Cybercrime Office is once again calling on citizens to increase their vigilance regarding advertisements promising high profits, unusually low prices for goods, links and documents from unverified sources, and to verify information before providing personal details or transferring money online.