Indonesian Citizens' Funds Stolen: Rp9.1 Trillion, 1,000 People Report 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 reports of online fraud submitted to the Indonesia Anti Scam Center (IASC) as of 14 January 2026.

Friderica Widyasari Dewi, who at the time served as a Commissioner of the OJK in the field of Education and Consumer Protection, explained that her agency has blocked more than 397,000 accounts.

“There is Rp9.1 trillion in public funds reported lost due to these scams, where the IASC has successfully blocked or saved funds amounting to Rp432 billion,” said Friderica, who now serves as Chair of the 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.

The 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.

“What we are also coordinating and collaborating on with other countries is not as many as in Indonesia. Perhaps 150 reports per day, 300, 400, but in Indonesia it can reach a thousand reports per day,” she stated.

According to her, this indicates the high escalation of fraud crimes in Indonesian society. This challenge is exacerbated 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 also becoming increasingly complex, posing its own challenges. If in the past 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 also across sectors,” she concluded.