Police anticipate surge in AI linked reports, says CCID chief

KUALA LUMPUR: The Commercial Crimes Investigation Department (CCID) anticipates a surge in police reports linked to artificial intelligence technology (AI) due to its prevalence in Malaysia and globally.

CCID director Datuk Seri Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf cites the rapid AI development as a concern, as it could be misused for disinformation and misinformation.

He mentioned that the rise in police reports is expected to escalate annually, given that the utilisation of AI can contribute to crimes such as cryptocurrency fraud, Macau scams, ransomware, and investment fraud.

“For example, AI is capable of imitating my natural voice communicating in different languages ​​such as Tamil, Mandarin, and English to commit various types of scams.

“Therefore, it poses a great challenge to CCID. Our investigative technology must be enhanced to keep up with the development of AI,” he told BK recently.

Ramli said CCID needs to be a few steps ahead in tackling AI-related scams.

“We do have plans to use AI technology in stages for investigations.

“We cannot be always skeptical towards its usage. When AI is employed for good purposes, the outcomes are positive. However, if it is employed with malicious intent, it transforms into a criminal case,” he said.

Commenting on the case involving the impersonation of a friend on Telegram and WhatsApp, he stated that CCID had identified a syndicate used by criminals for fraudulent activities.

The investigation revealed that the syndicate hacked into victims’ Telegram or WhatsApp accounts, reaching out to contacts in the victim’s friend list to request money.

“Even I receive hundreds of messages on Telegram from criminals posing as my friends to borrow money but I never respond.

“There was a case where a victim’s sister supposedly wanted to borrow money. He was tricked into clicking the link sent by his ‘sister’ on Telegram and ended up transferring RM3,000,” he added.

The victim only found out later that he was duped when he contacted his sister, who said she had not sent any such link, he said.

To prevent fraud, Ramli advised the public to be cautious when receiving money loan messages, especially if the bank account belongs to a different person.

He suggests it is wiser to verify the information by contacting the sender beforehand, as these cases can be challenging to detect once the transaction goes through. – BK