AIS sets up 1185 hotline for reporting spam, fraudulent calls

AIS customers can now report dubious phone calls and SMS messages by calling the AIS Spam Report Centre’s 1185 hotline, the operator’s chief consumer business officer Pratthana Leelapanang said on Friday.

Upon receiving complaints, AIS will check details of the suspicious phone numbers’ registration and track usage to see if the numbers were used for fraudulent activities.

These numbers will then be blocked, and the complainant will be notified within 72 hours, Pratthana said.

These cases will also be reported to the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission and the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) for legal action, he said.

“The information we collect can help make cybercrime investigations more efficient and have the culprits punished,” he added.

Describing the AIS hotline as a “new standard in the industry”, he said this was a pre-emptive move against fraudsters.

Mobile phone scams have become more prevalent, with fraudsters calling or texting prospective victims to manipulate them into transferring funds to fraudulent bank accounts.

CCIB chief Pol Lt-General Kornchai Klaiklueng on Friday lauded AIS for setting up the hotline, saying it was “useful for phone users as well as our work”.

He added that information collected by AIS about suspected fraudsters would help cyber crime police work faster in catching perpetrators for legal prosecution.

“We will also be able to stop these people from harassing others,” he said.