ANTI SCAM

Research project title: Selidik Tentang Keberkesanan Kempen 'Anti Scam' Dalam Pencegahan Jenayah Komersil / A Study on the Effectiveness of the 'Scam' Campaign in Preventing Commercial Crime.

 


KAJI SELIDIK TENTANG KEBERKESANAN KEMPEN ‘ANTI SCAM’ DALAM PENCEGAHAN JENAYAH KOMERSIL

Research Team:

  1. Associate Professor Dr Sharon Wilson (Sg. Long)
  2. Associate Professor Dr Santhidran Sinnappan (Sg. Long)
  3. Assistant Professor Dr Nor Azlili Hassan (Sg. Long)
  4. Assistant Professor Ts. Dr. Khor Kheng Kia (Kampar)
  5. Associate Professor Dr Tan Soon Aun (Kampar)
  6. En Afi Roshezry Bin Abu Bakar (Kampar)

 The project aimed to study the perception and evaluate the effectiveness of anti-scam campaigns in Malaysia. The study was conducted in three [3] phases.

Phase 1: Empirical study was conducted to explore and gather information from various stakeholders such as scam victims, non-victims, scammers, police, telecommunications agencies, Multimedia Commission and Banks.

 Phase 2:  A nationwide survey was conducted to study the susceptibility to online scam among Malaysian adults and the role of Polis Di-Raja Malaysia (PDRM) on safe-guarding the public from scammers.

 Phase 3: An experimental study as conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of anti-scam TikTok videos in raising public awareness and promoting preventive behaviours, explicitly examining the levels of anti-scam knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) among Malaysian adults aged 18 to 45 — the primary active TikTok user demographic.

The findings revealed that most of the respondents are familiar with police anti-scam campaigns. Malaysians have low self-control and have little knowledge on the different types of the scams. Many also have urgent need for money and are greedy [among others]. Therefore, there is a great need to ensure the safety of Malaysians of all walks of life on the dangers of scams. Being cautious can help create doubt and ‘buy some time’ to check with authorities on the authenticity of the said information provided by scammers. Being digitally and financially literate also helps create a defense mechanisms to prevent themselves from being susceptible and gullible to scam tactics.