South Korea reports sharp decline in voice phishing and scam cases

SEOUL, Aug. 25 (Yonhap) -- The number of scam cases has sharply dropped, police said Tuesday, partly attributing the decline to their preventive measures.

According to the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA), the number of voice phishing cases reported between January and July came to 7,940, down 46 percent from the same period last year. Financial losses caused by such crimes over the cited period amounted to 361.4 billion won (US$261 million), down 53 percent on-year.

The police partly attributed the sharp declines to their preventive measures. For example, the KNPA, in collaboration with three major mobile service providers here, used artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze mobile phone numbers used in phishing scams and suspended the service of phone numbers that showed similar patterns to those used in crimes.

The number of new scam cases is also on the decline, with the number of such cases, often involving fraudulent stock investment, reported in July coming to 2,275, down 41 percent from the same month last year, while financial losses caused by such cases also shrank 40 percent on-year to 62.1 billion won.

In July alone, the police sent emergency alerts to 127,026 people at risk of falling victim to such unconventional scams, compared with just 767 in February.

"The fact damage (caused by scams) is declining means the preemptive measures that have been taken are delivering results," Hong Suk-ki, head of the National Office of Investigation, said.