Bank Accounts Emptied by Scammers, Victims Left Resigned
Not all fraud cases end in resolution. Many simply remain in limbo, with no clarity on redress for the victims.
According to the latest report, ‘GSMA Consumer Scam Reports 2026: Defences Rising, Cases Unresolved’, 45% of reported fraud cases in South-East Asian countries end up unresolved.
In fact, as many as 82% of victims who lost money were unable to recover their funds. Only 1 in 10 fraud victims said they managed to obtain restitution.
“Unauthorised card charges are far more frequently recovered compared to other types of losses. Where such charges are genuinely unauthorised and the victim reports them to their financial institution, money is returned far more often than through any other channel. No other channel in this region comes close,” the report stated, quoted on Tuesday (15/9/2026).
The reason is that scammers have shifted from taking victims’ money directly to persuading victims to voluntarily transfer funds. In cases such as these, the money taken by fraudsters is very difficult to recover.
Over the past 12 months, 5% of internet users in Indonesia reported falling victim to fraud, the same figure as in Thailand. Higher rates were recorded in Vietnam (13%), the Philippines (10%), Malaysia (6%), Singapore (6%), and Thailand (5%).
User Trust Levels After Experiencing Fraud
Fraud cases that hit a dead end in recovery turn out to have serious consequences for users’ trust in various services, both in the private sector and government institutions.
The GSMA report highlights how people’s comfort in sharing data with financial institutions, telecommunications operators, governments and digital platforms is strongly influenced by whether the fraud cases they experienced were clearly resolved.
“Unresolved cases do not end when the victim gives up. Consumers who do not obtain resolution show a measurable difference in what they are willing to do next,” GSMA wrote in its report, quoted on Tuesday (15/9/2026).
According to GSMA, victims whose cases remain unresolved tend to behave more defensively, are less trusting, and are reluctant to share personal information with the relevant services.
This decline in trust is clearly visible across several indicators:
Financial institutions: Trust stands at 85% when fraud cases are successfully resolved, but drops sharply to 70% when cases remain unresolved.
SMS services: Trust is recorded at 52% when cases are resolved, but plunges to 32% when there is no resolution.
Chat platforms: User trust sits at 51% if cases are resolved, but falls drastically to 31% if their cases are left hanging.
This difference in attitude also affects users’ willingness to allow digital platforms to store personal data for fraud detection purposes.
“When cases are unresolved, trust in communication channels and willingness to share data are both lower,” GSMA said.