RegStream

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), in collaboration with the Hong Kong Police Force (the Police) and the Hong Kong Association of Banks (HKAB), announced today (5 December) the expansion of the Suspicious Account Alert to include transactions at Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) (including cash deposit machines). Starting from 8 December 2024, 22 participating banks (see the list at Annex) will gradually implement the alert mechanism at their ATMs, and provide their customers with detailed information on the implementation.

The scope of the Suspicious Account Alert mechanism, which is expanded to include transfers conducted at ATMs (including real-time same bank transfers and inter-bank transfers, as well as cash deposits), will cover the majority of the public’s day-to-day transfers. Whenever a customer conducts a funds transfer or cash deposit at a bank branch or an ATM, or via online banking, if the recipient’s account number, mobile phone number, email address or Faster Payment System (FPS) Identifier is labelled as “High Risk” in the Police’s Scameter, a scam and pitfall search engine, the customer will receive an alert to the associated fraud risk before confirming the transaction.

The alert mechanism was first introduced in November last year, with the first phase covering funds transfers using FPS proxy IDs. The alert mechanism was further expanded in August this year to cover internet banking and physical branch transactions. When customers initiate a bank transfer, banks will issue high risk alerts to customers based on data from the Scameter. In the third quarter of this year, banks issued over 24,000 alerts1, which reminded customers not to proceed with the high-risk transactions in a timely manner.

The HKMA reminds the public to carefully verify the payment details and the payee’s identity before proceeding with a transaction. If in doubt, the public should immediately terminate the transaction. The HKMA will continue to work closely with the Police and the banking industry to assess the effectiveness of anti-fraud measures and actively combat digital scams.

Hong Kong Monetary Authority 5 December 2024

1 Based on data provided by the 35 participating banks (which offer FPS, internet banking and physical branch services) of the Suspicious Account Alert mechanism.