The number of scams reported in Hong Kong has increased by 11.7 per cent year on year, including more than 5,500 cases featuring a new type of deception involving fake customer service messages.

Commissioner of Police Raymond Siu Chak-yee said on Tuesday that the force had recorded 94,727 criminal cases in 2024, a 5 per cent increase from the year before. Among them, scams accounted for 46.9 per cent.

But the police figures show the rate of the rise in scam cases was less than in previous years, with Hong Kong recording a 42.6 per cent increase in such reports from 2022 to 2023.

The force logged 44,480 scam cases in 2024, with Siu attributing the rise to a new deception tactic involving bogus customer service messages.

“The rise was mainly due to the new method of sham customer service phone scams, which arose early last year. In 2024, this new type of scam accounted for 5,575 cases,” he said.

Police also arrested more than 10,000 people in connection with scams and money laundering activities in 2024, a 13.6 per cent increase from the year before. The tally included people suspected of holding stooge accounts to process crime proceeds.