Indonesian Citizens' Funds Stolen: Rp9.1 Trillion, 1,000 People Cry Out Daily

The total losses from online scams in Indonesia have reached Rp9.1 trillion. This shocking fact was revealed by the Financial Services Authority (OJK), which recorded 432,637 online fraud reports to the Indonesia Anti Scam Center (IASC) as of 14 January 2026. Friderica Widyasari Dewi, who was then serving as a Commissioner of OJK for Education and Consumer Protection, explained that the authority has blocked more than 397,000 accounts. “Rp9.1 trillion in public funds have been reported lost due to these scams, with IASC successfully blocking or saving Rp432 billion in funds,” said Friderica, who now serves as Chair of OJK. The woman, affectionately known as Kiki, continued that the highest distribution of scam reports comes from Java, which still dominates with more than 303,000 reports, followed by Sumatra. The reported scam methods are varied, starting from shopping transaction fraud with 73,000 reports, followed by fake calls, investment scams, job scams, and scams promising prizes. OJK admits there are specific challenges in handling these scams, including a surge in complaints reaching around 1,000 reports per day, or 3-4 times higher than in other countries. “The coordination and cooperation we conduct with other countries is not as high as in Indonesia. Perhaps 150 reports per day, 300, 400, but in Indonesia it can reach 1,000 reports per day,” she stated. According to her, this shows the high escalation of fraud crimes in Indonesian society. This challenge is compounded by the fact that most reports, or around 80%, are submitted more than 12 hours after the incident. Meanwhile, in practice, scam proceeds can change hands and leave the victim’s account in less than 1 hour. “This time gap is a crucial factor in determining whether the victim’s funds can still be saved or not,” she added. On the other hand, the pattern of fund flight is becoming increasingly complex, posing its own challenges. If previously it only circulated in the banking sector, now victims’ funds do not stop at one bank account but are quickly transferred to various instruments and digital ecosystems. “From accounts in other banks, e-wallets, crypto assets, digital gold, to e-commerce platforms and other digital financial assets. This situation demands increased speed in cross-system blocking, across industry players, and across sectors,” she concluded.