SINGAPORE: The Singapore Police Force (SPF) has warned the public about a phishing site purporting to be the police website.
“Scammers made use of a web browser’s full-screen mode to show a Windows 10 desktop image (which will fill up the entire screen) displaying the fake SPF website,” the police said in an advisory on Friday (Feb 28).
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe fake website states the victim’s web browser has been “blocked due to viewing and dissemination of materials forbidden by (the) law of Singapore”. To unlock it, they would have to provide their credit card details to supposedly pay a fine.
As they are looking at an image, victims would not be able to click on the Start menu or open and close applications, leading them to believe their desktop is indeed locked.
“Such websites are actually phishing sites in disguise, designed to extract personal information and banking details from unsuspecting victims, which could result in monetary losses as scammers would use these details to make unauthorised purchases and transactions,” the police said.
Since January 2020, the police have received at least five reports of such scams, with losses amounting to at least S$22,700.
AdvertisementAdvertisementTo protect themselves from scammers if they encounter the fake site, the police advised the public to press Alt+Tab to see if it is possible to get back to the normal desktop or press Ctrl+Alt+Delete to open the task manager to terminate any web browser processes.
The public was also advised not to give out personal information and bank details.
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