2026 Elections: CIB reports NT$20.15m election-related fraud losses

Fraud cases related to Taiwan’s upcoming local nine-in-one elections have over the past two months resulted in financial losses totaling NT$20.15 million (US$614,929), the Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said yesterday.

Eighty-seven cases of election-related fraud were reported last month, resulting in losses of NT$19.11 million, it said.

In one case, a teacher in Kaohsiung came across a social media post offering free election merchandise for a NT$40 shipping fee, the bureau said.

The emblem of the Criminal Investigation Bureau is pictured in an undated photograph.

Photo: CNA

After clicking on a link in the post, the teacher was asked to complete a real-name verification process, it said.

The purported vendor then said its account had been frozen and asked the teacher for help, saying that the account was essential to supporting the vendor’s family.

The teacher followed instructions from someone posing as a bank employee and carried out 32 online transactions, resulting in a NT$1.39 million loss, the bureau said.

In another case, a person who wanted a campaign-related umbrella was tricked by a scammer posing as a customer service worker into scanning and generating a QR code, it said.

The victim’s QR code allowed scammers to withdraw money from their account, which resulted in a loss of more than NT$920,000, it added.

The scams typically involved fraudsters impersonating customer service representatives or bank employees and persuading victims to perform online banking operations, make cardless cash withdrawals or scan QR codes, the bureau said.

Common pretexts included claims that accounts had been frozen or that transactions required verification, it added.

Legitimate transactions do not require customers to verify payments by carrying out online banking operations, it said, urging people to stop the transaction if they encounter suspicious links or requests to engage in any type of banking transaction.

Anyone who suspects they have encountered a scam can call the 165 anti-fraud hotline or check the “165 Anti-fraud Dashboard” for verification, the bureau said.