GLOBEALERT
Sign in

Feed

Open sources, classified and cross-checked. 25+ stories.

AllConflictMilitaryPoliticsBusinessSci & TechCyberDisasterHealthWorld
24h3 days7 days30 daysAll·All regionsNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWestern EuropeEastern EuropeBalticsMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaSouth AsiaEast AsiaOceania
CYBER6d agoHong Kong students arrested as alleged core members of HK$2.16m fraud syndicateHong Kong police have arrested two students suspected of being key members of a fraud and money-laundering syndicate behind fake job advertisements, dating scams and bogus concert ticket sales. The force said on Thursday that officers had arrested 10 people in an earlier operation targeting the syndicate, which had allegedly swindled victims out of more than HK$2.1 million (US$267,578). The suspects, five men and five women aged between 13 and 68, were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to...South China Morning Post
CYBEROct 4Hong Kong woman loses HK$21.5 million in cryptocurrency scamA 60-year-old Hong Kong woman has lost more than HK$21 million (US$2.7 million) in a cryptocurrency scam after a fraudster posing as an investment expert she met online duped her. The clerk reported the case to police on Saturday, saying she had befriended an individual claiming to be an investment specialist on “Baby Kingdom”, a popular online parenting forum and community website, on March 15 this year, a source said. The fraudster duped her into investing on a fake cryptocurrency platform...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 29Hong Kong police receive 1,503 reports of suspicious iPhone charges worth HK$30mHong Kong police have received more than 1,500 reports of suspicious credit card transactions involving Apple’s new iPhone 18 Pro series, totalling more than HK$30 million (US$3.82 million). In an update on the case, which has drawn public attention, the force said the number of reports had risen to 1,503 as of Tuesday, from about 1,200 two weeks earlier. It added that all the transactions had been cancelled. Speaking at a Kowloon City district council meeting, Commissioner of Police Joe Chow...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 29Retired Hong Kong woman loses HK$2.9 million in online romance, fake app scamA retired woman in Hong Kong lost nearly HK$2.9 million (US$369,670) in a romance scam after a fraudster posing as a power company employee won her trust and lured her into a bogus investment scheme. Police said the case was among at least 18 online romance scams reported in the past week, with total losses nearing HK$7.8 million, according to the force’s CyberDefender social media page. The 71-year-old retiree met a man on Facebook who claimed to work for a power company. The pair gradually...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 21AI poses new national security threat, outgoing Hong Kong deputy police chief warnsRetiring deputy police commissioner Andrew Kan Kai-yan has said artificial intelligence (AI) poses a new threat to national security in Hong Kong, with the force turning to the emerging technology to help combat the issue. Kan raised the alarm after state security minister Chen Yixin warned last week of rising national security risks posed by AI. The senior mainland Chinese official also called for robust risk prevention frameworks and stronger global governance of the technology. Chief...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 21Hong Kong woman, 80, loses HK$6 million to fake online investment expertAn 80‑year‑old woman has lost HK$6 million (US$764,772) to a fake investment expert she met online, Hong Kong police have disclosed. The case was among more than 50 investment scams reported over the past week, with total losses approaching HK$30 million, according to a post on the force’s CyberDefender social media page. The victim, a retiree, first met the fraudster posing as an investment expert on Facebook before moving their conversations to WhatsApp, where the suspect built a relationship...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 14Hong Kong’s iPhone scam: how to protect your credit card from online fraudMore than 700 Hongkongers were shocked to discover that their credit cards had been used to place unauthorised orders for Apple’s new iPhone 18 Pro series handsets over the weekend. Although banks reassured victims they would not be charged as long as the cards were used with due care and the transactions were proven to be unauthorised, the incident still caused widespread concern over credit card security. The South China Morning Post asked information technology experts for practical tips on...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 14Apple should bear responsibility for Hong Kong iPhone card fraud, lawmaker saysApple is reviewing all current orders for suspicious transactions after more than 700 unauthorised credit card charges were reported in Hong Kong involving orders for its latest iPhone models. “All current orders are being reviewed before they are processed, and we are working to quickly identify and cancel any fraudulent transactions that may have been placed,” an Apple spokesman said on Monday. Over the weekend, many Hong Kong social media users reported unauthorised credit card transactions...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 5How some grey-market crypto ATMs in Hong Kong can turn users into fraud victimsInside a tiny self-service laundromat in Quarry Bay in the east of Hong Kong Island, next to a wall of washing machines, stands a waist-high cryptocurrency terminal with signs reading “Elon Musk recommends Dogecoin” and “Buy bitcoin in one minute”. In order to obtain Dogecoin through the ATM, customers feed Hong Kong dollar notes into a slot and scan a QR code. The equivalent amount in cryptocurrency is then credited into their digital wallet. Such machines have proliferated across the city in...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 3‘My nude became a sticker’: Hong Kong women say image abuse thrives despite lawFive years after a nude photo was taken without her consent, a woman opened Instagram to find the image had been turned into a sticker and sent back to her in a chat. Terrified that the sticker could already be circulating widely, the victim reached out to Emilia Wong Yue-kiu, a women’s rights activist and adult content creator who advocates for bodily autonomy. But Wong was pessimistic that reporting the case would help, noting it was just one of countless similar messages for help she had...South China Morning Post
CYBERSep 2Hong Kong watchdog sets integrity standards for government computers to fight misuseHong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has publicly unveiled its standards for the use of government computer systems after uncovering loopholes, including requiring bureaus and departments to self-check their compliance when requesting digital project funds. Danny Woo Ying-ming, commissioner of the ICAC, said on Wednesday that an investigation by his agency had found that some government computer systems had loopholes that raised the risk of corruption. “Once systems are...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 30Hong Kong WhatsApp hijacking scams surge 170% to nearly 2,000 casesWhatsApp account hijacking scams in Hong Kong surged by nearly 170 per cent to almost 2,000 cases in the first seven months of this year, with one victim losing as much as HK$12.2 million (US$1.55 million). Police said the 1,993 cases logged from January to July represented a 169.7 per cent increase from the 739 cases recorded over the same period last year. The figure also surpassed the 1,669 cases recorded in all of 2025. The cases over the first seven months resulted in losses of HK$146.3...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 28Hong Kong lawyer warns against doxxing after AIA staff suspended over mall brawlA lawyer has warned internet users in Hong Kong against exposing personal information of others on social media or risk committing the criminal offence of doxxing, after an insurance firm suspended an employee who was revealed to be allegedly involved in a brawl at a Kwun Tong shopping centre. Insurance service provider AIA on Thursday reportedly suspended an employee who was linked to a viral dispute among three women at a children’s play area the previous day. The trio was charged with...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 27Hong Kong parents to get alerts over teens’ self-harm searches on InstagramMeta Platforms has started sending out alerts to parents whose children repeatedly search for content about suicide or self-harm on Instagram as part of broader efforts to strengthen online safety for young users. Parents supervising a teen’s account can receive notifications by email, text message, WhatsApp or Instagram, depending on the contact information available. They will also be directed to expert resources on how to approach potentially sensitive conversations. Philip Chua, Meta’s...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 27Hong Kong privacy watchdog arrests boxer for allegedly doxxing opponentHong Kong’s privacy watchdog has arrested a boxer on suspicion of doxxing an opponent on social media platforms, disclosing the victim’s personal information and workplace without his consent. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) said on Thursday that the 29-year-old suspect had twice targeted the victim, a man he had fought at a boxing tournament in early 2025. On two occasions after the tournament – once in March last year and again this August – the suspect posted...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 26Hong Kong man loses HK$2.8 million in investment scam, among 50 cases in past weekA Hong Kong man has lost more than HK$2.8 million (US$357,000) in an online investment scam in which fraudsters claiming to be employees of electricity companies duped him into investing in a “recyclable waste project”. Police also said on Wednesday that the force had recorded 50 investment scams in the past week, with the total losses exceeding HK$30 million. The force said the man, who is in his sixties, became acquainted with the scammer on Facebook. The fraudster claimed to be an employee of...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 22Hong Kong police arrest 2 men allegedly linked to HK$500,000 phishing scamHong Kong police have arrested two men suspected of using 110 SIM cards to send phishing messages from a base of operations in a hotel and conning victims out of more than HK$500,000 (US$63,766). The force said on Saturday the men, aged 31 and 44, were arrested last Thursday on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud. They were allegedly linked to recent phishing scams in which fraudsters posed as delivery company staff, claiming victims had undelivered parcels, or as employees of online payment...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 16Hong Kong ex-regulator manager charged over unauthorised access to confidential filesHong Kong’s corruption watchdog has charged a former manager at a financial regulator with unauthorised access to its internal computer system to view confidential case files and licensee data. Tong Ka-lei, 39, who previously worked in the enforcement division of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), faces 12 counts of obtaining access to a computer with a view to dishonest gain for herself or another, in breach of the Crimes Ordinance. She is scheduled to appear at Eastern Court on...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 12Paraguay probe into Hong Kong-born crypto exec’s death triggers ‘wrench attack’ warningSouth China Morning Post
CYBERAug 7Hong Kong woman loses HK$69m to scammers posing as mainland Chinese officialsA Hong Kong woman has been conned out of nearly HK$69 million (US$8.8 million) in a month-long scam involving fraudsters posing as mainland Chinese officials. Police said on Friday that the 43-year-old woman received calls from people claiming to be mainland law enforcement officers, who accused her of committing a crime and demanded money to prove her innocence. The victim transferred about HK$68.9 million to designated bank accounts in multiple transactions between July 2 and August 1. She...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 5Hong Kong woman swindles landlords out of HK$4.3m in crypto investment scamHong Kong police have arrested a 67-year-old woman who posed as a prospective tenant to swindle two property owners out of HK$4.3 million (US$510,008) in a virtual currency investment scam. Investigators from the Western district crime squad said on Wednesday that the suspect had contacted two victims — who were separately advertising a flat and a parking space for rent — and offered to pay in advance to win their trust. She then persuaded them to join a supposed high-return investment...South China Morning Post
CYBERAug 4Hong Kong warns of scam sites posing as Canada, UK and Thailand e-visa portalsHong Kong’s privacy watchdog has warned of suspected fraudulent e-visa application websites that request personal data from unsuspecting applicants, with victims suffering losses of up to HK$1,700 (US$216). The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data said in a statement on Monday that it had received 16 inquiries or complaints over the past three months about the provision of personal data and fee payments to suspected fraudulent sites posing as e-visa application portals. “The...South China Morning Post
CYBERJul 29Hong Kong raises alert on AI voices as 150 WhatsApp hijackings lead to HK$26m lossesSouth China Morning Post
CYBERJul 27Hong Kong banks in early stages of preparing for quantum computing threats, HKMA saysHong Kong’s banking sector is still in the early stages of preparing for cybersecurity risks posed by quantum computing, the city’s de facto central bank said on Monday as it unveiled a new benchmark to track the industry’s readiness. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) launched its first Quantum Preparedness Index (QPI), which gave the sector a score of 2.3 out of 10, indicating that most banks are still building the foundations for a transition to the quantum era. The index, based on a...South China Morning Post
Older →