FICT students win Silver for AI-powered scam detection app
at international skills competition

A team of three students from the UTAR Faculty of Information and Communication Technology (FICT) showcased their innovation and technical prowess by winning the Silver Award at the 2025 World Vocational College Skills Competition (Southeast Asia Division) held from 9 to 11 September 2025 at the Cambodia-China University of Technology and Science (CCUTech) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

The winning team comprised FICT Computer Science students Vianne Chong Huiyu (team leader), Beh Han Sheng and Thai Jing Heng. The competition was hosted by CCUTech, coordinated by Nanjing University of Industry Technology (NJUIT), and held under the guidance of the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China.

Organised under the theme Skilled Youth, Shining Future, the competition aimed to showcase excellence in vocational and technical skills on an international platform, promote industry-education integration and enhance cross-border cooperation among Southeast Asian vocational institutions. It also encouraged participants to apply their practical skills and creativity in real-world problem-solving contexts.

Silver win for the FICT team (from left): Vianne Chong, Beh, Thai, and their supervisor Dr Nadeem

The UTAR team’s award-winning project, titled Spamurai: AI-Powered Real-Time Scam and Spam Detection App, stood out for its practicality and societal impact. The mobile application detects scams and spam in real time using artificial intelligence and multimodal scanning of text, audio and links. It provides proactive, user-controlled protection for smartphone users while ensuring data privacy.

Explaining the inspiration behind the project, the team said, “We were motivated by the growing financial losses and emotional harm caused by scams across Asia, which amount to billions annually. Our goal was to create a proactive defence tool that helps ordinary smartphone users detect scams before they fall victim.”

The app employs Google Gemini AI for intelligent decision-making, integrates with Android’s quick-access panel for instant activation, and can be adapted for enterprise or government cybersecurity use. Beyond its technical strengths, Spamurai contributes to societal well-being by reducing financial losses, enhancing public awareness of cybersecurity and building a safer and more trusted digital ecosystem.

The project aligns with several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, and SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth, by promoting technological innovation, digital safety and secure economic participation.

The team attributed their success to the strong academic foundation and hands-on learning environment at UTAR. They shared, “Our experience at UTAR played a crucial role in contributing to this success. The University’s emphasis on applied research, problem-based learning and innovation guided our project’s development.”

They added, “Courses in AI, software engineering and cybersecurity gave us the technical foundation to build Spamurai. Exposure to industry-linked projects and hands-on labs nurtured our problem-solving mindset. The guidance from our lecturers, especially Ts Dr Aun Yichiet and Ts Dr Nadeem Muhammad Waqas, helped refine our presentation, technical documentation and practical design to meet competition standards.”

Reflecting on their achievement, the team said, “What made us stand out was the practical value of our project, detecting scams in real time while protecting user privacy. Winning proves that innovation with purpose matters. It felt incredible to represent UTAR and our region. This achievement motivates us to keep improving our project for real-world deployment.”

The 2025 World Vocational College Skills Competition (Southeast Asia Division) is part of a global initiative to encourage vocational excellence and international cooperation. More information about the competition can be found at the official portal.

The UTAR team received a Silver Award and certificate during the award ceremony in Cambodia and is currently awaiting the delivery of their medal and cash prize.