Abu Dhabi: Residents have been warned against online phishing scams, with many of the recent attempts purporting to be official communications from the Abu Dhabi Police.
In the latest spate of such scams, recipients have received emails that report suspicious transactions made by the recipient. The recipient is then asked to visit the nearest police station, the Abu Dhabi Police announced in a statement sent today (January 31).
The scams target residents’ savings, and are often operated by international criminal outfits working from outside the UAE, the statement added. Some of the communications contain malware that trick people into revealing their bank account details and passwords on fake online webpages, which the criminals can then use to steal funds.
Colonel Dr Rashid Borshid, head of criminal investigation at Abu Dhabi Police, said that the rate of online criminal activity is on the rise because electronic crime is not limited by geographic or national boundaries. In many cases, the criminals can be remotely located while stealing from people miles away, he added.
Elaborating on the details of the recent scams, Colonel Dr Borshid said that the police had received complaints from people who were led to believe that they were wanted for questioning in connection with suspicious money transfers to their bank accounts.
“They claimed that they received a bank report including the name and address of a local bank in the letterhead, and that it asked them to refer to the nearest police station,” he said.
Preliminary investigations have shown that the emails are phony and have been sent from an unknown overseas source.
Colonel Dr Borshid urged residents not to fall prey to such online fraud, and not to respond to any kind of financial threats. He also said that residents must practise caution and avoid downloading files or opening attachments and links sent via these emails.
In 2012, UAE residents reportedly lost Dh1 billion to online fraud. In November 2012, the UAE passed a new cyber law that addresses a number of threats, including phishing scams, illegal fund transfers, online prostitution and pornography.
According to Colonel Dr Borshid, awareness is the first line of defence against online criminal activity. He therefore called upon residents to notify the police about any scams so that investigators can use the information to track the culprits.
