The Bank of Mozambique (BdM) revealed last Thursday (01) that the country has already lost around 180 million meticais as a result of 39,000 electronic frauds.

According to Jamal Omar, administrator of the monetary stability department at the BoM, who was speaking during the first seminar on fraud using telecommunications networks or electronic means of payment, 8,000 electronic frauds were recorded between January and May this year alone, causing financial losses of around 112 million meticais.

Quoted by Evidence newspaperJamal Omar revealed that the bulk of e-fraud occurs in electronic money payments, followed by bank card and internet banking transactions, which is why he argues that it is imperative to implement solutions to stop this phenomenon.

"As a central bank, we are renewing our commitment to ensure that information on fraud using electronic means of payment is collected and centralized in a timely manner on the reporting platform, while always safeguarding the banking secrecy required of credit institutions and financial companies," he added.

On the same occasion, the Attorney General's Office (PGR) revealed that in the first half of this year alone it had processed around 286 criminal cases related to computer and telecommunications fraud.

According to Amabélia Chuquela, deputy attorney general and head of the PGR's specialized criminal department, "the city of Maputo and the provinces of Nissa and Zambézia registered the highest number of cases in the period in question".

The source said that in relation to fraud using electronic payment instruments and channels, a total of 508 cases were processed in the first half of 2024, with the provinces of Zambézia, Gaza and Maputo City registering the highest number of cases.

(Photo DR)