According to GASA, in 2024 alone, victims across Asia-Pacific lost an estimated $688 billion, representing nearly two-thirds of global scam losses. With this in mind, Google today brought together industry partners, policymakers, and law enforcement agencies at its annual Online Safety Dialogue in Taiwan to develop collaborative solutions.
Among the key initiatives announced was a partnership with Taiwan’s Ministry of Digital Affairs, which will encompass data-sharing on scam trends, international coordination on anti-scam operations, co-development of advanced detection tools, and investment in public education campaigns.
Complementing this governmental collaboration, Google.org will allocate $5 million in anti-scam grants across Asia-Pacific during 2025, building on previous awards such as a $2 million grant to a Singaporean social-impact organisation and a $1 million grant to a Taiwanese non-profit aiming to reach 100,000 people with anti-fraud education.
Furthermore, to accelerate real-time intelligence sharing, Google also announced the expansion of its Global Signals Exchange (GSE), a platform launched in October 2024 that enables participating organisations to share real-time signals and alerts about online scams, allowing services and platforms to identify and disrupt fraudulent campaigns. To date, twenty partners contribute nearly 180 million scam-related signals. In the first quarter of 2025, Google linked ten additional product teams to the GSE, resulting in 10 million signals ingested and four million shared, a ten-fold increase over the pilot phase.
Finally, building on the success of its ShieldUp! mobile game in India, Google will roll out this interactive, game-based learning tool in Australia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand in 2025. ShieldUp! immerses players in safe, weakened versions of scam manipulation tactics, significantly improving their ability to identify fraudulent approaches compared with traditional awareness campaigns.
As online fraud techniques continue to evolve, Google stresses that sustainable defence requires sustained investment, transparent information sharing, and robust cross-sector partnerships, combining cutting-edge technology, localised education, and real-time intelligence exchange to stem the tide of scams across Asia-Pacific.
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