Media Statement By YB Chong Chieng Jen:
After almost 5 months of distress and anxiety, a victim of unauthorised and illegal internet bank transfers finally got her full refund of RM19,667.79 from her bank.
Miss Tiong is a Sarawakian student currently studying in Selangor. She has a savings account with Maybank Berhad.
Sometime in January, 2022, Miss Tiong discovered that between 8.1.2022 to 17.1.2022, there were 99 internet transfers of fund from her savings account to some third parties’ accounts! All these internet transfers were carried out without her knowledge or authority and she had not received any OTP messages or notifications from the bank in respect of the said transfers.
The total amount of the said 99 internet fund transfers was RM19,667.79.
She immediately lodged a police report and submitted a claim with the bank for the refund of the amount illegally transferred out from her account. Though the bank promised to investigate the matter within two months, she waited for months and yet there was no respond. She subsequently sought help from me.
For months, Miss Tiong was under tremendous distress over her loss of RM19,667.79 which was money for her tertiary education.
Yesterday, finally, to her relief and delight, she received the full refund of RM19,667.79 from Maybank.
After weeks of public pressure on banks to refund to their customers money illegally and unknowingly transferred out from their customers’ account, and the directive issued by Bank Negara Malaysia to banks to compensate their customers for such unauthorised transfers of funds, finally we see a positive outcome of this public outcry.
This is the first case that I come across in the recent monthsthat a bank refunds its customers for the illegal and unauthorised transfers of fund. I am grateful that Maybank has acted positively and fairly in Miss Tiong’s case, though after some delay.
I call upon all other banks to, quickly and without undue delay, process the requests from their customers to refund money illegally and unknowingly transferred from their accounts. It is only through such prompt action of the banks that public confidence in the financial institutions’ internet security system can be restored.
On the other hand, the Ministry of Finance and Bank Negara Malaysia must step up their pressure on banks to safeguard the money and interest of the banks’ customers.
15.6.2022
Chong Chieng Jen
MP for Stampin/ADUN for Padungan
