Fake HKICL Websites Promise FPS Refunds, Then Ask for ID and Bank Details

According to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, two fraudulent websites are posing as Hong Kong Interbank Clearing Limited (HKICL), the body behind Hong Kong's FPS payment system. The sites are monetaryauthorityhk.sbs and systemfps.xyz, and they call themselves 'Buyer Online Protection'.

The pitch is simple. Anyone who made a payment through FPS and had a problem with it is offered a refund, a way to report an unauthorised transaction, or support with an online purchase. That framing matters, because it puts the visitor in the role of someone already owed something, not someone being asked for anything.

How the site gets what it wants

The first step asks for a personal document number and an ID photo, along with a phone number, described as needed for real name verification. The reward dangled for completing this step is cash. Once that is handed over, the site asks for a bank name, account number and the account holder's name, framed as necessary to top up or withdraw from a virtual wallet on the platform.

The scam depends on that second request looking like a continuation of the first, not a new one. A visitor who has already typed in an ID number and a phone number is primed to keep going when the next form asks for banking details, because the process has already established itself as official-feeling and procedural. There is no actual refund process behind any of it.

The final step closes the loop. Users are directed to someone posing as HKICL customer service, which gives the fraud a human voice to answer questions and keep a hesitant visitor moving through the process.

The tell

HKICL says plainly that it does not provide FPS services directly to individual members of the public, and does not contact them proactively under usual circumstances. A website or a call offering to resolve an FPS problem directly is already outside how HKICL actually operates.

The genuine HKICL addresses are www.hkicl.com.hk and fps.hkicl.com.hk. The fraudulent domains also appear with extra text added to the end of the link, such as a reference to a refund order, so checking the base domain matters more than checking the full link.

Anyone who receives a suspicious call, website or message claiming to be from HKICL can call HKICL's general line, 2533 1111, to verify it directly. Anyone who believes they have already been a victim of this should report it to the police promptly.