Police have received two reports involving a scam where an unknown individual impersonated a teacher and allegedly collected payments from parents for school academic programmes using a fraudulent QR code.
Manjung District Police Chief, Assistant Commissioner Hasbullah Abd Rahman said the Commercial Crime Investigation Division at the Manjung District Police Headquarters received the reports yesterday, with investigations currently ongoing into the modus operandi used by the suspect.
He said preliminary findings showed the suspect misused a teacher’s name, photograph and phone number via WhatsApp before sending messages to parents, claiming payment was required for a school academic programme.
The suspect is also believed to have distributed a modified QR code under the school’s name to convince victims to transfer money into an account controlled by the scammer.
Hasbullah said the tactic was designed to exploit parents’ trust in schools and educational institutions.
He advised the public to always verify any payment requests directly with the school, avoid making payments based solely on WhatsApp messages, and ensure that QR codes or bank accounts used are officially verified by the school.
Members of the public who fall victim to such scams are urged to immediately contact the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) at 997, inform their bank, and lodge a police report without delay.
Police also reminded the public to remain vigilant and not easily fall for unsolicited payment requests without proper verification.
