The Hong Kong police announced that in the first half of this year, there were 20,613 local scam cases involving a total loss of HK$3.5 billion (about RM1.82 billion), with some criminal syndicates using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to commit fraud.
On the 14th, police announced to the media the status of scam-related crimes for the first half of the year. Investment scams accounted for only around 10% of cases, but caused economic losses as high as HK$1.66 billion (about RM860 million), which is half of the total losses.
Police have found that scam syndicates use various tactics, including AI-generated investment experts to lure victims into investing in virtual assets. Some promote via internet celebrities, hold public events, and even rent expensive offices as headquarters, creating the illusion that the company is powerful and financially strong.
Senior Superintendent Kong Hing-fun of the Commercial Crime Bureau acknowledged that the advancement of AI technology has indeed made it easier for scammers and increased the risk of the public falling into traps.
Police cited a particularly heavy-loss single online investment scam. In June 2025, a 67-year-old foreign businessman met an alleged investment expert scammer on Facebook. They switched to communicating via WhatsApp and developed a romantic relationship. The businessman was then lured into investing in cryptocurrency, and between July 2025 and January 2026, he transferred cryptocurrency worth about HK$84.79 million to the scammer's e-wallet. He only realized he had been scammed when he was unable to retrieve the so-called “returns.”
Online information shows that since 2019, the number of scam cases in Hong Kong had risen for five consecutive years, only showing a slight decrease for the first time last year. In 2025, there were 43,212 scam cases in Hong Kong, a slight drop of 2.9% compared to 2024. The total loss amounted to HK$8.1 billion, down 11.3% from the previous year.