🛑 CBSL Launches "Be Scam Proof" Campaign Amid Rising Digital Fraud

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has officially launched a month-long, countrywide awareness initiative titled "Be Scam Proof" to combat a surge in sophisticated digital fraud and unauthorized investment schemes. • Overall Threat: CBSL Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe warned that financial scams are exploiting both advancing technologies and deep structural gaps in financial literacy, particularly outside urban centers. These fraudulent operations erode household wealth, weaken trust in the formal banking & financial services sector, and undermine broader economic recovery. • Targeted Fraud Types: Based on provisional campaign details, the initiative addresses a broad spectrum of emerging and persistent threats, including: • Phishing attempts, malicious links, and online scams. • Illegal deposit-taking and pyramid schemes. • Unauthorized plantation-based investment operations promising unusually high returns. • Account lending and account renting schemes. • National Context & Strategy: Describing consumer protection as a key pillar of Sri Lanka’s National Financial Inclusion Strategy, the Governor stated that economic uncertainty has created highly favorable conditions for fraudsters to exploit vulnerable groups. • Coalition Call: CBSL emphasized that regulators cannot fight this alone, calling for a coordinated national defense. The campaign demands active, multi-sector collaboration from telecommunications operators to block network misuse, the media to drive public education, fintech providers to strengthen safeguards, and law enforcement to track perpetrators.