SINGAPORE: The police issued a warning to the public about scams involving the impersonation of officers from government agencies on Thursday (Feb 9), with at least 148 victims losing at least S$182,000 to such scammers since January.
In its statement, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said that the victims would receive unsolicited phone calls or in-app calls, like video calls through WhatsApp.
The scammer would allegedly claim to be from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) or the police, before stating that there were issues with the victim’s bank accounts and that additional verification was required.
Victims would then be asked to provide banking or personal information - such as banking credentials and one-time passwords (OTPs) - to resolve the supposed issues.
The scammer might also request that victims show their identity cards, work permits or bank cards during the in-app video call.
The victims would only discover that they had been scammed after realising that unauthorised transactions had been made from their bank accounts.
"The police would like to emphasise that we do not ask members of the public to provide their bank accounts’ information and passwords, or to transfer money to any bank account," said SPF.
The police urged the public to download the ScamShield app, which blocks scam calls, and that they should never share banking credentials with anyone over the phone.
Members of the public can also report an offending number to WhatsApp, for the service to initiate in-app blocking.
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In its statement, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said that the victims would receive unsolicited phone calls or in-app calls, like video calls through WhatsApp.
The scammer would allegedly claim to be from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) or the police, before stating that there were issues with the victim’s bank accounts and that additional verification was required.
Victims would then be asked to provide banking or personal information - such as banking credentials and one-time passwords (OTPs) - to resolve the supposed issues.
The scammer might also request that victims show their identity cards, work permits or bank cards during the in-app video call.
The victims would only discover that they had been scammed after realising that unauthorised transactions had been made from their bank accounts.
"The police would like to emphasise that we do not ask members of the public to provide their bank accounts’ information and passwords, or to transfer money to any bank account," said SPF.
The police urged the public to download the ScamShield app, which blocks scam calls, and that they should never share banking credentials with anyone over the phone.
Members of the public can also report an offending number to WhatsApp, for the service to initiate in-app blocking.
Continue reading...