KUWAIT CITY, May 20: A Gulf national has filed a case with the Commercial Affairs Prosecution Office, accusing an individual of forging a bank document. The complaint was submitted based on a recommendation from a local bank and a mobile telecommunications company.

According to the complainant, he intended to pay a mobile phone bill of 6 Kuwaiti dinars. While searching for the telecom company’s website via Google, he mistakenly accessed a fraudulent site that closely resembled the legitimate one. The incident occurred at 10:12 PM on April 21.

He stated, “I entered the amount of 6 dinars into the payment field and proceeded to enter my account number, bank name, and password. However, the website informed me that the transaction could not be completed.”

To his shock, within just two minutes—between 10:12 PM and 10:14 PM—he received four text messages, each notifying him of a withdrawal of 24,750 dinars from his account. He quickly contacted his bank, and an employee managed to block the card before a fifth attempted withdrawal of the same amount could go through.

“I then contacted the telecom company,” he said, “and they confirmed that the site I had used was indeed fraudulent.” He added, “I thanked God I was awake during the incident—otherwise, my bank account would have been emptied by morning.”

Financial fraud continues to pose a significant threat to individuals and businesses, especially with the widespread use of electronic communication, which fraudsters exploit by taking advantage of people’s lack of awareness and understanding of cybersecurity measures.

The Kuwaiti legislature has addressed the issue of cyber fraud by enforcing strict penalties. Article 3 of Law No. 63 of 2015 on Combating Information Technology Crimes stipulates that anyone who, through the use of information networks or technological means, unlawfully obtains money, benefits, documents, or signatures for themselves or others, is subject to imprisonment for up to three years and/or a fine ranging from 3,000 to 10,000 Kuwaiti dinars.

KUWAIT CITY, May 19: The General Administration of Customs successfully foiled an attempt to smuggle a quantity of banned chewing tobacco into the country. The contraband was concealed within a specially constructed hidden compartment inside a shipping container that arrived via Shuaiba Port, in an apparent effort to evade customs inspections.

The shipment raised suspicion among customs inspectors, prompting a thorough inspection using advanced screening equipment and modern detection technologies. This led to the discovery of the secret compartment containing the illegal tobacco.  Authorities arrested an Indian national who was scheduled to receive the shipment. Legal action has been initiated against him in coordination with the relevant agencies.

The General Administration of Customs reaffirmed its commitment to combating smuggling activities and enforcing the law, emphasizing its ongoing efforts to safeguard national security and protect public health and safety.

KUWAIT CITY, May 19: The Court of Cassation has upheld the verdicts issued by both the Court of Appeal and the Criminal Court, sentencing a Kuwaiti university student to three years in prison with hard labor. The student was convicted of insulting the Amir and inciting the overthrow of the regime through articles posted on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) using a fake account.

During the trial, the defendant denied all charges, claiming that her account had been exploited by an expatriate residing outside Kuwait. She stated that this individual had threatened her and warned her not to delete the tweets and articles that were published under her name.