Quick action via the NSRC hotline 997 is vital as scammers can drain 90% of funds in minutes, with RM34 million recovered last year.
CYBERJAYA: Quick action is crucial to stopping online scams, as scammers can drain victims’ accounts in minutes, said Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution.
He said in some cases, up to 80–90% of a victim’s funds can disappear within three to 10 minutes of fraudulent activity.
He emphasised that speed and layering of transactions used by scammers make investigations challenging.
“The first one to two hours after the fraud is reported are the most crucial, as early action allows banks and investigators to earmark and block accounts quickly.
“Patterns show withdrawals of RM1,000, RM1,500, and RM3,000 without victims sending any confirmation, indicating that the scammers are highly organised and efficient,” he told reporters at the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) launch, officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yesterday.
Saifuddin added that in 2025, the NSRC handled 146,167 complaint calls and froze 138,915 accounts linked to fraud, successfully recovering RM34,051,357.68 from syndicates.
He said the centre also saw a significant increase in funds returned to victims through earmarking, rising from RM508,479.39 in 2024 to RM6,649,171.03 in 2025.
Meanwhile, he said as of January 2026, an additional RM1,443,533.40 has been recovered through early account freezing.
“The standard procedure is to block the account, investigate the fraud, and return any recoverable funds, with success measured by how much money is successfully returned to the victims.
“Delayed reporting significantly reduces recovery chances.
“For instance, if a victim notices the fraud at 2 p.m. but only reports it at 10 p.m., almost 80% of the funds may already be gone, limiting recoverable amounts to less than 20% in some cases.
“Full recovery is often impossible once the scammer has withdrawn the bulk of the funds. Rapid reporting within the first hour is therefore essential to maximise recovery,” he added.
Saifuddin also highlighted the amendments to Section 424 of the Penal Code, which now makes it an offence for individuals to knowingly allow their accounts to be used for fraud.
He said online fraud is often facilitated by individuals who willingly allow their accounts to be used.
Under this law, anyone who knowingly allows their account to be used as a financial or payment instrument in fraudulent activity is committing a legal offence.
“Previously, there was no legal framework to hold such individuals accountable.
“Under this law, anyone who knowingly allows their account to be used as a financial or payment instrument in fraudulent activity is committing a legal offence.”
He said with a dedicated team of 82 staff operating round the clock, NSRC aims to build public confidence in reporting online fraud.
Saifuddin said the Prime Minister has also emphasised the importance of public awareness programmes to prevent individuals from falling victim to online scams, especially those tempted by high-reward offers.
“I urge the public to monitor their accounts closely and report suspicious transactions immediately to improve the chances of reclaiming lost funds.”
For the record, NSRC was previously located at Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the centre now operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week at Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) Tower Two, Cyberjaya.
NSRC involves multiple core agencies, including BNM, MCMC, and the National Financial Crime Prevention Centre (NFCC).