Credit card fraud reports over iPhone Duo pre-orders jump to 130 cases, police say

Hong Kong police have received nearly 20 more reports of unauthorised credit card transactions for iPhone Duo pre-orders over the weekend, bringing the total amount involved to HK$5 million (US$637,100).

A police spokesman said that, as of 9am on Monday, the force had received 130 reports of unauthorised credit card transactions for smartphones amounting to HK$5 million.

The cases were temporarily classified as “obtaining property by deception” and were being investigated by the Cyber Security and Technology Crime Bureau.

The force earlier said on Saturday that residents began reporting suspicious credit card purchases of the foldable iPhone Duo after online pre-orders started on Friday at 8pm.

Apple had decided not to activate 3D Secure (3DS), which helps authenticate a buyer’s identity during online transactions, despite being urged by police to do so.

The force said it was gravely concerned over Apple’s failure to meet its corporate responsibilities, leaving the door open for criminals to prey on customers.

An Apple spokesman said on Saturday that all current iPhone Duo orders were being reviewed before they were processed, and that the company was working to quickly identify and cancel any fraudulent transactions.

Asked to respond to police’s earlier criticism and whether it would activate 3DS on Monday, Apple maintained its previous stance and said it had nothing to add.

The weekend spike in complaints marked a second time in just over a month that an iPhone launch has been marred by reports of widespread fraud.

Police said they were still investigating the 1,572 reports of suspicious credit card transactions involving the iPhone 18 Pro series that became available for pre-order on September 12. Those transactions exceeded HK$31 million.