Standard Chartered Hong Kong launches Anti-Fraud Convenience Store to raise scam awareness
Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, following the success of “Anti-Fraud Restaurant” last year, launched another public education campaign “Anti-Fraud Convenience Store”, which sets up a pop-up store in a high-traffic shopping mall to deliver fraud prevention tips through playfully named convenience store “products”. The new initiative is intended to remind members of the public, in an interesting and engaging manner, to stay vigilant against fraud and scams.
Presiding over the kick-off ceremony today, Mary Huen, CEO, Hong Kong and Greater China & North Asia, Standard Chartered, was joined by Arthur Yuen, Deputy Chief Executive, Hong Kong Monetary Authority (“HKMA”), and Keith Yip, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations), Hong Kong Police Force (“HKPF”), in a collective call aimed at raising public awareness around fraud prevention. At the event, celebrity Kalok Chow also shared useful anti-fraud tips as a “one-day store manager”.
Following the launch event, the management team of Standard Chartered Hong Kong acted as “Fraud Busters” at the pop-up convenience store, sharing the latest anti-fraud information with university students and elderly people from St. James’ Settlement while they “shopped” the 14 “creative products”.
Mary Huen, CEO, Hong Kong and Greater China & North Asia, Standard Chartered, said: “Standard Chartered has been working closely with the HKMA, the HKPF and the banking industry on fraud and scam prevention, while continuously enhancing our own detection capabilities. In the first five months of this year, our fraud detection rate tripled. Compared to the same period last year, we’ve significantly increased the amount of fraudulent funds intercepted before transfer, and our clients’ relevant losses have dropped by 70%. Being one of the first to respond to the HKMA’s call in April to introduce the interim ‘Money Safe’ measures, we will become the first bank in Hong Kong to fully implement ‘Money Safe’ within this month. Customers can activate this feature not only by visiting branches but also through SC Mobile, online, or phone banking, providing convenient ways to access this protection for their deposits. We will continue to increase our investment in fraud prevention technology and public education to help guard against evolving scams.”
Arthur Yuen, Deputy Chief Executive, Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said, “The HKMA is committed to combating fraud and scams on various fronts. We have also worked with the banking industry to introduce a number of anti-scam tools to help the public, such as ‘E- Banking Security ABC’ to strengthen the security of E-banking and ‘Money Safe’ to provide additional protection to deposits. We encourage the public to make good use of these anti- scam tools and stay alert all the time to protect themselves against scams.”
Keith Yip, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations), said, “In the first five months of this year, the rise in fraud cases across Hong Kong has begun to slow down, with financial losses from scams significantly dropping from HK$3.79 billion in the same period last year to HK$2.87 billion. With proactive police intervention, the related detection rate has also shown an upward trend, delivering encouraging results. We’d like to thank Standard Chartered Bank for its collaboration and dedication to anti-scam public education. We look forward to partnering with various sectors to further educate the public in detecting and combating scams and cyber traps.”
The “Anti-Fraud Convenience Store” is a pop-up store open from now until 20 July. Visitors can engage in a simulated shopping environment featuring various creatively designed “anti- fraud products”. This initiative aims to educate the public on how to guard against common scams, such as fraudsters impersonating officials or customer service representatives, investment tip scams, and electronic payment scams like phishing messages or fake websites.
