'Send money urgently': Fraudsters hack MPs’ phone numbers

Chief Whip Nurul Islam Moni has warned members of parliament (MPs) to remain vigilant, saying fraudsters are using hacked mobile phone data and social media apps, voice cloning and forged signatures to commit fraud.

He said MPs are falling victim to such scams. The Chief Whip issued the warning while speaking on a point of order during Thursday’s session of parliament.

The chief whip said, “It has appeared in newspapers that on mobile phones... Yesterday, I received messages from three MPs asking me to send Tk 50,000 urgently, Tk 30,000, and Tk 25,000. They came from three numbers. I tried to contact the people whose numbers they came from. I called them, but they did not answer. It means the mobile (numbers) have been hacked.”

Drawing the attention of MPs, the chief whip said, “It has become very important for us to be sufficiently aware of this issue. I believe that if you know about it, the whole of Bangladesh will know. Let the whole country know through television.”

He further said, “They are doing this through voice cloning and by using documents. Some people are forging signatures and producing documents, which has also become a problem. Many members of the opposition have faced this, and members of the ruling party have faced it too.”

The chief whip urged MPs to remain aware of the issue.

At this point, addressing the chief whip, Deputy Speaker Kayser Kamal said, “Since you have raised the issue, who is responsible for taking preventive measures? The state. Won’t you say something about that?”

“Whether it is cloning or not, the individuals whose numbers are being affected are not responsible for it. The relevant ministry, the executive branch or the state must take preventive measures. If you have anything to say about that, please do,” he added.

In response, the chief whip said, “We discussed the issue yesterday (Wednesday). The BTRC has started efforts to take preventive measures so that we can resolve this problem.”

Earlier, speaking on a point of order, the chief whip also said, “There are face-recognition devices in all the lobbies. Face recognition is not being carried out there; around 120 to 122 [MPs] do so. I have been informed by parliament that all MPs should undergo face recognition before entering the parliament chamber. Today, all members should undergo face recognition before leaving.”