Taiwanese authorities continue to issue warnings, stating that fraud groups are constantly innovating their methods, and the amount of fraud remains high.
In 2024, the daily amount of fraud in Taiwan reached NT$420 million. The police and social platforms are also strengthening prevention, but new fraudulent methods are emerging incessantly, especially the rampant scam ads spread through Facebook.
The Criminal Investigation Bureau's Anti-Fraud Center stated that scam ads often attract people by offering "free raffles" or "free books," eventually leading victims to scam groups or personal chats, waiting for an opportunity to defraud them of their property.
Facebook's targeted ad placements allow these scam messages to spread quickly. In 2023, 55% of the population was exposed to such scam ads, becoming the second largest channel for fraud.
After obtaining personal information through free raffles, fraud groups further use fake packages or phone scams, even impersonating lovers or consultants to gain trust, and finally carry out a "nurturing and killing" scheme. Once successful, the scammers disappear without a trace. Despite the 165 anti-fraud hotline handling a large number of reports, fraud cases continue to occur frequently, with Taiwanese losing NT$3.1 billion per week in 2024.
Although the government has required social platforms to take down scam ads, the complex process of uploading and removing ads allows fraud groups to quickly resume activities. The Criminal Investigation Bureau points out that relying solely on law enforcement agencies cannot completely solve the problem; social platforms and advertisers need to strengthen source management to prevent the spread of scam information.
Experts point out that the operations of scam gangs are becoming more precise, even imitating legitimate fan pages to gain users' trust and lead them to investment scam websites.
Internet companies state that despite actively reporting and taking down scam websites, due to the lack of effective supervision, fake accounts continue to emerge, and the public needs to be more vigilant to avoid falling into scam traps.
