Details of crackdown on fraudulent activity issued

Public security organs across China solved 391,000 telecom or online fraud cases in the first 11 months of last year and apprehended numerous suspects, the Ministry of Public Security said on Friday.

They also engaged in face-to-face discussions with 13.89 million people at risk of becoming victims of fraud, collaborated with other departments to intercept 2.75 billion fraudulent calls and 2.28 billion fraudulent messages, dealt with 8.36 million fraudulent domain names and intercepted 328.8 billion yuan ($46 billion) of funds related to fraud cases, it said.

The number of telecom fraud cases has decreased since August, indicating the significant success of the crackdown and governance efforts, the ministry said.

It rolled out several special operations to curb the high incidence of telecom fraud and target criminal groups involved in illegal services to overseas fraud groups including promotions, money laundering, technical development and smuggling. A total of 79,000 suspects involved in such illegal activities were apprehended last year, including 263 key members of fraud groups.

Task forces were dispatched to countries including Thailand, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Indonesia for international law enforcement cooperation, resulting in the dismantling of numerous overseas fraud dens and the arrest of over 3,000 criminal suspects, thus creating a strong deterrent effect.

In response to the severe telecom fraud situation in northern Myanmar, the ministry deployed public security departments in Yunnan province and other areas to advance border law enforcement cooperation. Multiple operations were conducted to eradicate fraud group strongholds and apprehend suspects involved in such activities.

Public security departments in the provinces of Zhejiang, Liaoning, Fujian and elsewhere issued arrest warrants for key leaders of telecom fraud groups in the Kokang self-administered zone in northern Myanmar, targeting the criminal activities of multiple family-based fraud groups that organized and operated fraud dens openly, armed and protected fraudsters, and engaged in long-term telecom scams against Chinese citizens.

With strong cooperation from various parties in Myanmar, 41,000 telecom fraud suspects were handed over to China last year, and many overseas fraud dens were successfully eradicated, the ministry said.

It has collaborated with other central government departments to promote comprehensive control, strengthen industry supervision, plug regulatory loopholes and squeeze the space available for illegal activities related to scamming.

In November, the ministry and other authorities released the draft Joint Disciplinary Measures for Telecom Fraud and Associated Illegal Activities to solicit public opinion, aiming to advance the fight against such crimes.

Efforts to issue warnings were also stepped up, with the National Anti-Fraud Center having issued 9.4 million alerts to date, the ministry added.