Apple cancels fraudulent iPhone orders amid credit card fraud cases

As of 5 p.m. today, the police received more than 1,200 reports of suspected credit card fraud related to the purchase of smartphones involving over 25 million dollars.

This as Apple said it has been identifying and cancelling fraudulent iPhone orders.

Scores of residents have complained of their inability to purchase Apple's latest iPhone since it was released last Saturday, while still receiving bank notifications of having made cardless payments.

Some residents even lost money despite never having bought the new smartphone.

Apple staff responded to the recent surge in such incidents saying that they will assess all orders of their products to identify and cancel fraudulent transactions.

District Councillor Shum Ho-kit, who also received a cashless payment notification made for an iPhone purchase, said additional authentication measures would make such purchases safer.

Several banks issuing credit cards stressed they have provided extra authentication measures for relevant transactions.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority, meanwhile, said merchants who do not provide the additional authentication options must bear responsibility for any financial losses.

This as some in the payment industry believe Apple may initially have decided not to implement a double authentication policy in hopes of increasing the transaction efficiency for customers.