Malaysian retirees lose more than $100,000 in crypto investment scams

Malaysian police are investigating a crypto fraud that allegedly deceived a 71-year-old retiree out of RM 525,000 by pledging a return on investment.

The incident took place in Kuala Terengganu city. There, scammers approached the victim through online communication after the victim encountered suspicious investment opportunities via Facebook ads, local media outlet Malaysiakini reported on September 29th.

Recently, Facebook ads have gained a notorious reputation as a tool that crypto fraudsters have been employed to promote fake crypto investment schemes, or as being employed to redirect victims to fraudulent investment platforms designed to emit fake crypto exchanges and savings.

Often, these ads are seen wearing false claims of celebrity endorsement and connections with well-known crypto projects, and are designed to look professional enough to legally pass.

Malaysiakini’s report did not provide much information on how the fraud was deployed, but Kuala Terengganu District Police Chief Azli Noor said the victim had pledged a $500,000 profit on the investment.

“The victim used his retirement savings to make seven transactions in the suspect’s account between August 20th and 27th,” Noor said in a statement.

No arrests had been made at the time of reporting, but police suspect that the syndicate, operating behind the scenes, had coordinated the fraud.

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Earlier this year, Malaysian authorities warned that bad actors were increasingly targeting local people, especially seniors.

Bukit Aman, Director of Commercial Crime Investigation, Datuk Seri Ramri Mohamed Joh, said at the time that fraudsters often pretend to be trusted entities such as financial regulators, police officers and banks, gain the trust of victims and pressure them to transfer large amounts of money.

According to Ramli, advances in technology, including AI-generated voices and Deepfake Visuals, have made it easier for fraudsters to implement sophisticated fraud schemes that are set in persuasive spoofing and difficult to detect until it’s too late.

Beyond investment fraud, the country has witnessed an increase in illegal crypto mining activities, and authorities have led multiple raids for the past year to dismantle these businesses that drive stolen electricity and unenforced hardware.

In this context, Malaysia remains open to strengthening the crypto economy, and according to previous reports, Malaysia’s Securities Commission has issued a cooperative discussion paper seeking to overhaul the country’s digital asset framework to introduce better investor protection and licensing standards.

read more: The FBI warns about fake lawyers targeting victims of past crypto fraud