Matrade warns of fraudsters impersonating its staff

The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) has cautioned both businesses and the public about fraudulent activities perpetrated by individuals who falsely impersonate its staff via email and WhatsApp. These impostors targeted vendors, posing as legitimate entities seeking to secure urgent services for overseas trade delegations, booth translation services for international exhibitions, and corporate recreational events.

They requested sensitive company information, such as profiles, registration certificates, bank statements, and finance ministry certificates, which they then used to create false letters of award and government purchase orders.

Matrade revealed that numerous companies had already been duped by this syndicate, resulting in financial losses due to payments made to third-party suppliers or designated "sub-orders." Scammers instructed awarded vendors to immediately purchase merchandise and gift supplies from fraudulent shell accounts operated by the syndicate, directly facilitating the false transactions.

The agency took the breach seriously and reported the incident to police, CyberSecurity Malaysia, and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission for investigations and enforcement.

To safeguard themselves, Matrade advised businesses to confirm all procurement requests and ensure communications originated from official Matrade email addresses ending with "@matrade.gov.my." The agency emphasized that its officers did not engage in procurement negotiations through commercial email providers like Gmail and Yahoo or personal messaging platforms.

Matrade reminded businesses that all procurement activities must comply with Treasury circulars and be conducted through authorized government procurement channels.

If businesses had transferred funds to fraudulent parties, they were urged to contact the National Scam Response Centre at 997 for assistance in tracing and freezing illicit banking transactions. Businesses were also instructed to file police reports at the nearest police station, providing transaction records, forged documents, and chat transcripts to support investigations.

Matrade reiterated its zero-tolerance stance on any form of fraud involving its name and vowed to take necessary actions to protect the interests of exporters and the public. Businesses seeking to verify the authenticity of procurement requests claiming to originate from Matrade could contact the agency at 03-6207 7077 or email info@matrade.gov.my.