By silicon.com, 12 August 2003 15:23
NEWS 12.08.98 A Malaysian Embassy official told Silicon News on Tuesday afternoon that two people have been detained for spreading rumours of rioting in Kuala Lumpur over the internet. The cyber-rumours are reported to have caused a dip in the national currency when speculators became jumpy about the possibility of unrest in the capital. But the Embassy official denied that they had been responsible saying: "The currency dipped anyway and it was a coincidence that it happened at the same time. It's now stable." However, the culprits might face up to two years detention for their pranks, in line with Malaysia's Internal Security Act, according to Bernama, Malaysia's news agency. Police tracked down the individuals with the help of the ISP they used, Mimos Berhad. 12.08.03 Late 1997 saw something of a financial meltdown of some South-East Asian economies, so it wasn't especially surprising that at this jittery stage currency traders were willing to react to even the most unsupported of rumours. It wouldn't take long before bogus claims on the web started to land all sorts of people in trouble. Fake press releases and 'pumping' of certain stocks on newsgroups used by day traders led to prosecutions, fully supported by Wall Street, showing there is perhaps no more common a reason for spreading fear, uncertainty and doubt than money. Five years on and we'd like to think most surfers are savvy enough to always question sources. Scam emails, often supposedly from respected providers such as AOL and PayPal, have affected many users personally. Most of us now tend to turn to trusted sources and a mix of media for the most essential information.
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