Fraudsters employing tried and tested ruses continue to find new victims.
Chinese-language media have reported a case in which a National Chiao Tung University professor was defrauded of NT$3.18 million (US$103,270).
The professor, renowned in his field, received a call from a fraud ring in September last year, the reports said.
The caller, posing as a prosecutor, told the professor that his bank accounts had been compromised by a criminal organization for money laundering purposes, and he was asked to withdraw cash from his accounts and place it under the management of the prosecutors’ office, the reports said.
The professor followed the instructions and withdrew NT$1.5 million from his accounts and physically handed over the cash to a fraudster posing as a prosecutor in Hsinchu, the reports said.
The fraudster produced a faked document to win the trust of the professor, who twice more handed money over, the reports said.
The professor only started to suspect he had been duped after discussing the matter with relatives.
A police spokesperson said that fraud rings target the shortcomings of intellectuals — who often lack social experience — invariably telling them it is “essential to maintain confidentiality” that they “inform no third party for the duration of the investigation.”
Of the reported 20,000 victims of telecom fraud last year, 9,712 had bachelor’s degrees, while 853 had master’s degrees or doctorates, Criminal Investigation Bureau data show.
Police said those with advanced degrees are often focused on their area of specialty to the exclusion of the outside world.
Such people also have strong egos and tend to believe that “anti-fraud” campaigns publicized by the police do not apply to them.
Well-known intellectuals who have been duped include former minister of economic affairs Yiin Chii-ming (尹啟銘), who withdrew NT$1.2 million in May 2013 after he received a call from someone claiming to have kidnapped his son.
In March 2013, Academia Sinica vice president Liu Tsui-jung (劉翠溶) lost NT$20 million to a fraudster who posed as a prosecutor.
Many military personnel, government officials, engineers and researchers have all been duped, because their working environment tends to be quite insular, making them less vigilant about being defrauded, police said, adding that academics often refuse to believe that they have been cheated.
Such people often do not admit having fallen prey to fraudsters because “they are used to teaching others and cannot bring themselves to admit they need guidance,” a police officer said.
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
RSS