Hong Kong WhatsApp hijacking scams surge 170% to nearly 2,000 cases

WhatsApp account hijacking scams in Hong Kong surged by nearly 170 per cent to almost 2,000 cases in the first seven months of this year, with one victim losing as much as HK$12.2 million (US$1.55 million).Police said the 1,993 cases logged from January to July represented a 169.7 per cent increase from the 739 cases recorded over the same period last year. The figure also surpassed the 1,669 cases recorded in all of 2025.The cases over the first seven months resulted in losses of HK$146.3 million, down by 22.7 per cent from HK$189.2 million over the same period last year.Despite the lower total loss, police warned that the threat was far from subsiding, noting that some victims lost between HK$1 million and more than HK$10 million.“The rise in cases was related to the habits of our residents using these social media or instant messaging platforms,” said Superintendent Hui Yee-wai of the force’s cyber security and technology crime bureau.“On the other hand, we have also seen that Artificial Intelligence is a factor. Every scam involved fake websites, while AI has made generating these fake websites significantly easier.”