Former economy minister Rafizi Ramli has revealed that he received an email demanding US$100,000 to prevent the release of a sex video allegedly showing him with a man.
He said Subang MP Wong Chen had stated shortly later that a similar threat involving the same man had been made against him.
Wong confirmed with FMT that a police report was immediately lodged. He said he would make a statement after speaking to police on Monday.
Rafizi, who commended Wong’s office for their prompt action, said the email sent to him had included a blurry screenshot of the video and a QR code for transferring the money.
He said the screenshot was of a doctored video in which his image had been superimposed. Rafizi said technology now made it easy to fabricate images and videos but he did not think the would-be blackmailers would spend millions to hire an AI firm.
“Many think it’s easy to be a politician. But if you take a stand, expose corruption, or challenge entrenched interests, your daily life can be disrupted in ways like this,” he said.
Rafizi, the former PKR deputy president, suggested that the primary aim of the email may have been to hack his electronic devices. He said he has faced multiple hacking attempts over the past nine months, including sophisticated attacks targeting his iPhone and Apple accounts.
He said Apple issued him warnings about such attacks in November 2024, and in March, June and on Sept 3, with the firm identifying the attacks as “mercenary spyware” linked to his political activities.
Rafizi said Apple also cited spyware like Pegasus, which was developed by Israeli cyber-intelligence firm NSO Group to eavesdrop on mobile phones and harvest data.
He said the threats and attempts to defame him with fake videos, fake news, and hacking were likely to continue, and he warned the public to verify unusual videos, images, or emails purportedly involving him.
The email came weeks after Rafizi’s 12-year-old son was stabbed with a syringe at a shopping mall in Putrajaya last month, with his wife then receiving two threatening text messages reading: “Be quiet. If you continue, AIDS.”
While doctors said his son was not drugged or poisoned, he will have to undergo six months of medical tests to rule out the possibility that he was injected with viral infections such as HIV or hepatitis.
Rafizi said he suspected that the attack was linked to a case he was looking into, saying he had recently met with a group of whistleblowers.
