Electronic bank fraud underreported

Speaker of the National Assembly, Manzoor Nadir, says electronic bank fraud, though a serious problem, remains underreported.
He was at the time speaking after receiving the 2024 Auditor General Report, which was handed over during a simple ceremony in the MPs’ Lounge of the Parliament Office in Georgetown on Thursday.

The report is for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024.
Nadir said while the Auditor General spoke about impactful issues such as cybercrime and cybersecurity during his remarks, the electronic hacking of bank accounts remains a major issue.
“Today, this remains one of the biggest areas of leakages– fraud. More particularly, it relates to people gaining unauthorised access to bank accounts. I suspect that right here in Guyana, our financial institutions are being hit regularly, but these incidents often go unreported,” he said.
He added that cybersecurity is much more than stopping someone from penetrating resources, but tracking where the money goes and how the systems are breached.
Nadir said recognising these emerging challenges and preparing staff for them speaks to great leadership.
He further stressed that the amount of work which goes into the reports is often not recognised, as he congratulated the Auditor General and his staff for a job executed in an efficient and professional manner.
“They are very, very instrumental in improving efficiency in the delivery of government service and, in particular, ensuring that we have maximum benefit for the dollars spent. I note that we now have a Minister of Public Service, Efficiency, and Implementation. So, clearly, that must have been influenced by these reports,” Nadir said.
Nadir further pointed out that another factor often missed at annual presentations is how the Audit Office of Guyana has improved to tackle emerging sectors, including oil and gas.