A Taichung family nearly lost money to an online investment scam, but bank staff and police caught it in time — a rare win against a fraud tactic that keeps spreading.

• A 75-year-old woman went to the bank to send NT$40,000 for her son, who had joined an "investment platform" he found through TikTok.
• The scammers told him he had to pay more money to "top up his score" before he could withdraw his profits — a classic stalling trick.
• Bank staff thought the request looked wrong and called the police, who confirmed it was a scam and got the transfer cancelled.
• Checks on the account the money was headed to showed heavy, suspicious cash flowing in and out.

Outlook: Phrases like "top up your deposit," "raise your membership level," and "unlock your profits" remain the standard script for these scams, and Taiwanese banks are being pushed to flag them at the counter.