KUALA LUMPUR: The Madani government has agreed to expand the role of the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) to cover all forms of cybercrime, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.

He said a nationwide 24-hour response network, coordinated across multiple government agencies, would also be established to enhance cybercrime response capabilities.

“The strengthening of the NSRC will involve integrating local expertise, improving inter-agency coordination, and increasing human resources,” he said in a Facebook post.

The prime minister said he had earlier chaired a special meeting of the National Cyber Security Committee (JKSN) to evaluate immediate measures to bolster the NSRC.

Anwar said that since 2022, nearly 4.7 billion online scam attempts had been recorded, a staggering and worrying figure that demanded urgent and coordinated action.

He said the Home Ministry and the Royal Malaysia Police had been tasked with fast-tracking the implementation of the NSRC’s new structure, which includes clearly defining its role to ensure it is easily accessible and understood by the public.

A “no wrong door” approach will also be adopted to simplify the complaint and assistance process, allowing victims to seek help from any agency without being redirected, he said.

“I urge all agencies to act more proactively and think ahead to ensure comprehensive protection for the people.

“At the same time, our national cyber defence readiness must continue to be enhanced, both domestically and in collaboration with international partners,” he added.

This article first appeared on NST.