Banks, telco operators, social media platforms must co-pay online scam victims

The Cabinet on Tuesday approved a draft executive decree to amend an existing decree on technology crime suppression, which will require banks, telecom operators, and social media platforms to co-pay victims of online scams.

Government spokesman Jirayu Houngsub stated that the Cabinet approved the draft amendment to the Executive Decree on Measures to Prevent and Suppress Technological Crime 2023 after receiving confirmation from the secretary-general of the Council of State that it could be implemented lawfully.

According to Jirayu, the Cabinet was also reassured by Digital Economy and Society Minister Prasert Chantararuangthong that the current technology crime executive decree had become inadequate in combating the growing number of online scams and call-centre gangs.

The secretary-general of the Council of State Office indicated that the amendment could be made via an executive decree when the government deems it an urgent measure necessary to protect public safety and economic stability.

Prasert informed the Cabinet that, despite the existence of the technology crime suppression decree, the public still suffered financial damage of around 60 to 70 million baht per day, compared to 100 to 120 million baht per day before the decree was enforced.

Prasert explained that the amended law would provide the necessary tools to effectively tackle call-centre gangs and online scammers. He noted that the current decree lacked provisions for tackling peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms used by call-centre gangs to trade cryptocurrencies.

Jirayu confirmed that, after the Cabinet approved the draft as proposed by the Digital Economy and Society Ministry, the draft would be sent to the Council of State for review before being published in the Royal Gazette for enforcement.

Jirayu added that the process would take about 30 days, with the new executive decree expected to take effect by February.
According to Jirayu, the key amendments can be summarised as follows:

• Grant more authority to take action against P2P platforms involved in criminal activities.
• Impose an obligation on telecom providers to suspend SIM cards associated with criminal activities.
• Oblige banks to send information regarding fraudulent accounts to the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) for faster investigation and reimbursement to victims.
• Increase penalties for P2P platforms and banks that fail to deny opening accounts for criminals.
• Impose penalties for the disclosure of personal information.
• Hold financial institutions, mobile networks, and social media platforms accountable for the damages caused.

The draft decree states that between October 2023 and November 2024, there were 402,542 cases of online crimes causing damages worth 42.662 billion baht.

As a result, the Digital Economy and Society Ministry sees the urgent need to amend the current executive decree to add measures to combat online scams.

The added measures include:

• Prohibiting the buying and selling of digital assets through Peer-to-Peer (P2P) lending platforms. This includes banning the provision of services for the buying, selling, or exchanging of digital assets, such as cryptocurrency tokens, for commercial use. Digital asset businesses will be required to refuse account openings and suspend services or transactions for customers associated with digital asset wallets involved in technology-related crimes (to reduce money laundering via digital currency conversion).
• Assigning the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) or mobile network providers the responsibility to temporarily suspend mobile phone services for suspicious phone numbers.
• Holding financial institutions, mobile network providers, other related service providers, and social media platforms accountable for damages caused to victims deceived by technology-related crimes, if these entities fail to exercise due care in their professional duties.
• Empowering the transaction committee of the Anti-Money Laundering Office to consider refunding victims without requiring them to wait for a court ruling in criminal cases before making a final decision.