This 2 Years PPATK Records Cybercrime BEC Enters Indonesia, The State's Reputation Is Damaged If Anticipated Wrong

JAKARTA - The crime of money laundering (TPPU) through fraud with the Business Email Compromise (BEC) scheme has become a global problem in the last 5 years. This action wreaks havoc on thousands of businesses with billions of dollars in losses each year.

BEC is a form of cyber crime by committing fraud using fake electronic mail (email) or email hacking by criminals.

The goal is to divert the purpose of transferring funds to a company account that is deliberately set up with a name that resembles the actual company.

The Center for Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis (PPATK) noted that in the last two years this crime had entered the Indonesian financial system. Worse, the anxiety and uncertainty caused by COVID-19 are taken advantage of by the perpetrators.

Head of PPATK Dian Ediana Rae said that if no systematic and consistent prevention and prosecution steps were taken, this crime would undermine the integrity of the banking and financial system in Indonesia in the eyes of business actors and international financial institutions.

"In turn, this can damage the perception and good reputation of the country," said Dian Ediana in Jakarta, Antara, Wednesday, August 18.

Prudence needs to be increased for all business people. Moreover, they take advantage of the facilities provided by the government to business actors to set up businesses by applying for business licenses electronically.

Business people are also asked to increase vigilance, both when making payments abroad and when receiving payments.

"If there is an unusual situation, both related to accounts and payment terms, please clarify with business partners as soon as possible," he urged.

The head of PPATK recommends several strategies to banks in anticipating this crime. First, improving the application of the Know Your Customer principle in all its offices.

Second, banks are expected not to apply a new account opening policy as a performance measure and not to rely on third party services to attract new customers.

Third, banks are also asked to apply the precautionary principle in setting targets for collecting third party funds, including in treating receipts of funds from abroad.

And lastly, banks must carry out due diligence and enhance due diligence to understand customer profiles well, before carrying out bookkeeping to the destination account of funds coming in from abroad.

"This is necessary considering that financial transactions related to BEC generally use financial services or products owned by banks, including fund transfer transactions, cash withdrawals, and foreign exchange," explained Dian.

The head of PPATK stated that he would coordinate with related institutions including the Financial Services Authority, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Law and Human Rights.

In order to maintain the integrity of Indonesia's financial system, prevent the spread of fraudulent acts using the BEC mode, as well as avoid losses to business actors and the public, in the near future PPATK will submit the TPPU-TPPT Black List (AML-CFT Black List).

The TPPU-TPPT Black List, among others, contains cybercriminals, both individuals and legal entities, so that they cannot open accounts at all Financial Service Providers (PJK) throughout Indonesia, including customers who use other payment systems.

“In the near future, PPATK will also submit indicators or parameters to all PJKs to be used in identifying suspicious financial transactions related to BEC. These indicators or parameters are input from the Public Private Partnership (PPP) or Intracnet which was initiated by PPATK since May 2021," said the Head of PPATK. who is also the former Head of the Bank Indonesia Representative Office for Europe in London.

He explained that through the application of the authority to temporarily suspend financial transactions as mandated by Law Number 8 of 2010 concerning the Prevention and Eradication of the Crime of Money Laundering, PPATK has saved significant amounts of funds originating from the proceeds of BEC crimes that occurred in Italy, the Netherlands, America. United States, Germany, Turkey, Japan, and in several other countries.

"In practice, BEC actors often take advantage of transactions that are cross-border, and involve syndicates operating in Indonesia and outside the territory of Indonesia," he explained.

During the period from July 2020 to July 2021, the proceeds of crimes that entered the banking system in Indonesia had reached Rp. 300 billion, and those that were saved through the temporary suspension of transactions reached Rp. 175 billion. The rest could not be saved because they had been pulled by the perpetrators, who are currently in the process of being investigated by the Police.

The high proceeds of crime that have been successfully withdrawn by criminals are mainly due to the delay in the information submitted, either by the Financial Intelligence Institution or Interpol of the victim's country of origin to PPATK so that the funds have already been withdrawn by the perpetrators.

To overcome the delay in delivering this information, PPATK is in the process of maturation in the form of active coordination with the Indonesian National Police to immediately form a Transnational Crime Rapid Response Team. PPATK will also optimize the Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through optimizing the role of the Indonesian Embassy in increasing the effectiveness of eradicating international crimes such as cyber crime.

"Optimization of cooperation is also carried out by PPATK with the global financial intelligence network to take steps to prevent and eradicate cyber crime, especially BEC," concluded the Head of PPATK.