The Police would like to alert members of the public on the re-emergence of phishing scams involving emails purportedly sent from Singapore Post (SingPost) and Singtel with a fraudulent URL link embedded. Since January 2022, at least 85 victims had fallen prey to such email phishing scams, with total losses amounting to at least $237,000.
In these cases, victims would receive emails from scammers impersonating SingPost or Singtel with domains that appear unrelated to the two companies. In the first variant, the email would state that there were billing issues due to missing information and direct victims to click on an URL link embedded within the email to renew their Singtel subscription. In the second variant, the email would state that there were outstanding payments for parcel delivery and direct victims to click on an embedded URL link to make payments to SingPost. Upon clicking on these URL links, victims would be redirected to fraudulent websites where they were tricked into providing their login information such as account username and password, payment information such as credit/debit card details and One Time Password (OTP). Victims only realised that they had been scammed when they discovered unauthorised transactions made using their credit/debit cards.
Members of the public are advised to adopt the following crime prevention measures:
- Do not click on URL links provided in unsolicited emails from email addresses with suspicious domain names;
- Always verify the authenticity of the information with the official website or sources;
- Never disclose your personal or Internet banking details and OTP to anyone; and
- Report any fraudulent transaction involving your e-payment accounts to the e-payment service provider immediately.
If you have information relating to such crimes or if you are in doubt, please call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. Please call ‘999’ if you require urgent Police assistance.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam hotline at 1800-722-6688. Join the ‘Spot the Signs. Stop the Crimes’ campaign at www.scamalert.sg/fight by signing up as an advocate to receive up-to-date messages and share them with your family and friends. Together, we can help stop scams and prevent our loved ones from becoming the next victim.
Annex A
Picture 1: Examples of Fake Emails
Picture 2: Examples of Fake Website
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
03 November 2022 @ 12:30 PM