Over 10,000 cases have been reported to the police in 2026, with a large chunk of them being thefts, traffic accidents and drug related crimes. However, scams have seen a troubling rise over the last few months.
Inspector of Police and Head of the Anti-Scam Centre Adam Naveed has stated recently that they have received around 1,700 scam cases just this year, with losses totaling MVR 16 million. A few weeks in 2026 have seen mid-double digit scam figures sharply raising total losses, with only MVR 9 million having been recovered.
Concerning Numbers Halfway Through the Year
In mid June, the Anti-Scam Center said they received reports of 36 scam cases within just a week, between 7th June to 13th June, clocking in losses amounting to MVR 118,370.05. Authorities stated they were able to recover MVR 164,240.60 from the losses at the time.
Their statistics showed that the sources of the scams were originating from online messaging platforms, iBay, phone calls, unknown links and Facebook Marketplace. The cases were split between 26 e-commerce cases, one for currency exchange, four for impersonation and five cases split into other categories.
Cybercrime reports more than doubled in the first six months of 2026, with online shopping scams having contributed to most of the crimes. Police stated in July that they received reports of 1,053 cybercrime cases in the first half of 2026, which is a 105 percent increase compared to 2025’s 512 cases in the same amount of time. Similarly, they also said that social media related scams saw a sharp rise from 15 cases in 2025 to 109 in 2026.
Post-Six Month Statistics
The Anti-Scam Center released statistics in early August, stating that 42 scams where losses totaling MVR 334,549 were reported between 26th July to 1st August, with MVR 163,558 being recovered at the time they made the announcement on 3rd August.
The figures are split below:
- 15 e-commerce related cases.
- 11 refunds issued after canceling bookings.
- 8 foreign currency cases.
- 3 cases of extortion through impersonation.
Their data also revealed that an average of six scam cases were reported daily within that week, and that a total of almost MVR 1.4 million was lost to 180 scam cases in July. 43 percent of the total reported cases were related to e-commerce, the highest out of all reported crimes.
Scam cases that were reported in July:
- E-commerce / online business: 78 cases (43 percent)
- Refunds from booking cancellations: 36 cases (20 percent)
- Miscellaneous scams: 26 cases (14 percent)
- Foreign currency exchange: 20 cases (11 percent)
- Imposter scams: 20 cases (11 percent)
Police also said that more than MVR 600,000 of the money that was lost was recovered which is 46 percent of the total losses in July.
On 10th August, police statistics showed that the total number of scam cases that have been reported to the police since the creation of the Anti-Scam Center on 17th March 2025 reached 3,000 and losses totaling MVR 35 million, of which only MVR 13 million had been recovered at the time from 279 reported cases. Police also said that they managed to completely recover funds from 1,196 reported cases.
Orders From Up High
On 19th August, the Cabinet convened for a meeting and decided to take legal and administrative action against those who registered SIM cards for phones that were being smuggled into prison. This decision came after an investigation conducted by the Ministry of Homeland Security and Technology highlighted a rise in scam calls from prisoners.
In an attempt to slow down these crimes, the Cabinet also decided to not sell more than one SIM card to unskilled expatriate laborers. Additionally, they also arranged for the police to be informed if a SIM card is lost or destroyed, subsequently denying SIM card purchases to said individuals until certain requirements are met.
On 2nd October, Prosecutor General Abbas Shareef said that they were going to prosecute cases involving bank account and card handovers to other individuals in order to commit financial crimes. He told Mihaaru News that the decision was made due to such crimes becoming commonplace.
He said that they would start reviewing each case one after the other and press charges once the police finish with their investigation and send the cases to the Prosecutor General’s (PG) Office.
Notable Scam Cases
On 8th September, police stated that a particular type of case came to their attention, whereby an individual would pose as the owner of an apartment in Hulhumale’ that they are leasing for daily and monthly rent, with the individual fraudulently taking money from interested applicants via social media.
Police said their investigation revealed that fake TikTok accounts titled “Hulhumale’ Daily Rent Apartment” (@hulhumaleapartment) were being used in the crimes, along with phone number 7217905, but that the owners of the accounts who transfer money in relation to these cases were not involved in acts of fraud and deception.
The account resurfaced under a new name within a week named Bandaara Lodge, with people on social media alleging they paid money without being able to view the apartments. The account was soon deactivated after the police publicized the case.
On 6th October, police announced that there were scam messages being sent to the public under their name on Viber with a +48 number. They said that the accounts had names like “Maldive Police”. Police advised the public that they would never reach out to anyone about financial transactions or OTPs requesting personal information.
On 10th October, the police stated they noticed via their Cyber Security Operations Center (CSOC) that dangerous scam emails were being sent to government institutions and administrations. The police said that the emails were written in such a way that it seemed like the emails were from trusted and valid official administrations or known parties. They also said the emails included dangerous files and links masquerading as documents, file-share links or official invitations.
The police went on to say that interacting and clicking on the links may result in the hackers getting sensitive information such as usernames and passwords, which may lead to them being able to enter administration computer systems and networks without the proper clearance, allowing them to compromise said systems.
The police theorized that these attacks are part of a planned campaign that had a specific aim in mind.
On 23rd October, the police stated on their website that the Anti-Scam Center took part in an international operation titled “Operation Confrontation Ghost”, led by UAE’s Ministry of Interior. The operation led to the arrest of 17 individuals, with the recovery of MVR 3.1 million that had been lost through scams, which is around 59.1 percent of the total amount. The operation had a total of 30 countries and international bodies collaborating with each other.
The police said the operation was conducted from July to September, and that 544 scams were reported to the Anti-Scam Center, with losses totaling MVR 5.3 million.
On 25th October, police announced that they had arrested three suspects in connection to a scam case that involved MVR 32,000 in losses.
On 28th October, police stated they arrested another three individuals related to two separate scam cases on Facebook Marketplace, where there were fraudulent claims of goods being sold.
Advice from the Police
The police have been strongly urging the public to carry out various steps if they suspect they are being scammed:
- Verify the authenticity of online sellers.
- Do not make payments in advance before receiving goods from unknown parties.
- Exercise caution when conducting online transactions.
- Report any suspicious activities immediately.
- Opt for cash on delivery instead of making online payments.
- Ensure the validity of transactions.
- Verify information from messages and advertisements.
- Do not share OTP codes, passwords and banking details.
The police also outlined how fraud and deception in fake apartment rentals is done:
- False advertising: Taking pictures and videos of other people's apartments in order to get people interested, and advertising it for rent at inadequately cheap prices.
- Trying to get money quickly: Telling people that there are other customers asking to rent the apartment once communication on a messaging platform begins, and demand an advance immediately so that their booking can quickly be confirmed.
- Taking an advance payment: Telling people to deposit an advance payment between MVR 2,550 and MVR 10,000 to specific bank accounts.
- Using stolen documents and IDs: Sending stolen ID cards and invalid documents via chat to gain trust.
- Stop replying once they have the money: Immediately stopping communication with those sending money once the slip for the money transfer has been sent, without handing the apartment to them or their money back to them.
