SINGAPORE: In September, victims lost at least $6.7 million in total as over 100 cases of government official and banker impersonation scams were reported in Singapore, according to a joint statement from the police and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) on Oct 10.
According to The Straits Times, scammers posed as officers from major banks like DBS, OCBC, UOB, and Standard Chartered. They called victims, claiming there were suspicious transactions or credit card issues, then offered to help, but their goal was to trick people into giving up their money.
When victims expressed confusion or denied knowing about the transactions, the scammer then transfers the call to another person pretending to be a government official. This second scammer often contacted victims through messaging apps like WhatsApp.
To seem convincing, scammers held video calls while wearing fake police or MAS badges and using realistic backgrounds. They sometimes showed fake warrant cards or official documents to look more legitimate.
During these calls, victims were falsely accused of crimes such as money laundering. They were then pressured to transfer money to so-called “safety accounts” for investigations. Many victims only realised they had been scammed when the “officials” became unreachable or when they tried to check their cases with banks or the police.
The public is encouraged to take safety precautions, such as turning on security features, looking out for signs of scams, and reporting any scams to the authorities.
People can contact the police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or visit the ScamShield website for more information and to report scams. /TISG
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