Scam Fund Recovery Rate Rises to 44 Per Cent, Police Says

The Maldives Police Service has recovered over MVR 9 million lost to digital fraud this year, pushing the national scam fund recovery rate to 44 per cent.

Speaking on PSM News’ “Raajje Miadhu” programme, Inspector of Police and Head of the Anti-Scam Centre Adam Naveed stated that the recovery figure marks a notable improvement from the 38 per cent recorded during the same period last year. He credited the progress to the dedicated centre, created to closely monitor, investigate, and curb the nationwide surge in fraudulent activities.

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According to police figures, approximately 1,700 scam cases involving cumulative losses of MVR 16 million have been lodged this year, with more than MVR 9 million retrieved so far. Highlighting previous trends, he noted that between 2021 and 2024, authorities registered 6,000 cases resulting in losses of MVR 110 million, a period when preventive enforcement had yet to produce optimal outcomes.

Inspector Naveed attributed the higher recovery rate to shifts in criminal tactics, rapid interventions, and reinforced banking security. Notably, scams involving compromised SIM cards saw a marked decline this year as commercial banks fortified systemic safeguards.

Despite this progress, e-commerce fraud remains the most prevalent category of reported scams, followed closely by fraudulent currency exchange schemes and relationship-based confidence scams.

Scammers predominantly target victims through deceptive phone calls or fraudulent links distributed via SMS and email. Once clicked, malicious links secretly extract sensitive data from the user’s device, leaving victims unaware of the breach until funds disappear from their accounts. Authorities reiterated that users should never open unverified links, even if sent under the guise of reputable corporations or known contacts.

Inspector Naveed also highlighted that perpetrators frequently single out elderly individuals due to lower digital literacy. He urged families to take proactive responsibility by educating older relatives about current technological risks and scam tactics to help protect them from exploitation.