THE anti-graft agency and the Immigration Department have crippled a syndicate that has been issuing fake Temporary Employment Visit Passes (PLKS) to foreigners which have resulted in losses to the department amounting to millions of ringgit.

Five people, including the syndicate leader, were arrested in a large-scale operation at 22 locations in Kuala Lumpur early this morning, led by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Immigration Department.

“The syndicate worked with ‘insiders’ to hack into the Immigration Department’s database by installing transmitters, which enabled them to change the passwords of immigration officers.

“From there, they were able to print the PLKS from their operation centre outside the Immigration Department,” a source told The Malaysian Insight.

The source said this was a serious security breach.

“The ability of the syndicate to hack the Immigration Department’s computer system allowed them to print PLKS and sell them to foreigners to work illegally in the country.

“It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of fake PLKS have been printed by this syndicate at a cost of between RM6,000 and RM8,000,” the source said, adding that this issue was once raised in the National Audit Report and discussed in Parliament.

“The syndicate was capable of hacking, changing and using the passwords of immigration officers to enter the names and personal details of foreign workers as if they were obtaining PLKS legally.

“What was more worrying, this syndicate was also able to shut down and re-enter the ‘blacklist’ or ‘red alert’ status of an individual to enable him to pass immigration restrictions at the airport for a certain fee,” he added.

Investigators seized two computers, transmitters and computer equipment following the raid yesterday.

It is learnt that the syndicate have been operating at one of the hotels in Jalan Sultan Ismail.

“They regularly moved from one place to another, including luxury hotels to avoid being detected by the authorities,” source said.

MACC Chief Commissioner, Azam Baki, confirmed the arrest. – April 6, 2021.