New law to fight online criminals

A new Royal Decree on Cyber Crime Prevention and Suppression is now in effect, giving victims, banks, and the authorities more options in fighting online scams and other illegal online activities.

The royal decree was published in the Royal Gazette on Friday and immediately took effect after its publication, Deputy Government Spokesperson Traisuree Taisaranakul said.

The law allows victims of online scams to immediately file for the suspension of a mule account that has been set up using their stolen identity via 15 banks’ hotline numbers and to file a scam complaint with police stations, physically and online.

The law additionally allows banks the authority to temporarily suspend a suspected mule account and for the use of artificially intelligent (AI) technology to investigate illicit transactions.

The law also outlines the punishment for cybercriminals.

“The…