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The Police would like to alert members of the public to the resurgence of scam campaign of fraudulent Telegram messages claiming to provide links to information on GSTV – Cash and MediSave and have resulted in victims’ Telegram accounts being taken over.

In this scam variant, victims would receive messages containing infographics which encouraged them to check their eligibility for their GSTV – Cash and MediSave through a fake link embedded within the Telegram messages. Upon clicking the links in these messages, victims would be asked to disclose personal information such as mobile numbers, names and/or NRIC numbers. They may also be prompted to provide Telegram verification codes which would allow scammers to take over their Telegram accounts. Using the victims’ Telegram accounts, the scammers would then disseminate phishing links to the victims’ contacts or add them into chat groups that promoted fraudulent investment schemes.

The Police would like to remind members of the public that they will NEVER be asked to disclose personal credentials or bank log-in details to claim their GSTV – Cash and MediSave payments. Eligible citizens who have previously signed up for the GSTV scheme will automatically receive the payments. The SMS notification from "gov.sg" will only inform citizens of their benefit(s). Citizens will not be asked to reply to the SMS, click any links, or provide any information to the sender. Members of the public may visit govbenefits.gov.sg for more details. 

In addition, the public should also note that the Ministry of Finance (MOF) will only disseminate information through its official channels¹. MOF does not have a broadcast channel on Telegram and will not contact members of the public through Telegram. 

The Police would like to advise members of the public to adopt the following precautionary measures to protect themselves from scams: 

• ADD – ScamShield app to block and filter SMSes. Set up security features (e.g. set up transaction limits for internet banking transactions and credit/debit card transactions, enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), Multifactor Authentication for banks and e-wallets, use the Money Lock feature offered by your bank to “lock up” a portion of your money so that it cannot be transferred out digitally by anyone, further protecting your savings from scams). Protect your Telegram account by enabling the ‘Two-Step Verification’ feature. This can be done by opening Telegram and going to ‘Settings’ > ‘Privacy and Security > ‘Two-Step Verification’.
  
  
• CHECK – authenticity of any clickable links and the webpage address for discrepancies. Do not use clickable links provided by unknown persons. Look out for the “.gov.sg” in the URL for Government websites. If a website looks like a Government website but does not contain “.gov.sg”, you can verify it by checking the list of Government associated websites available on https://www.gov.sg/trusted-sites. You can also check the legitimacy of suspicious messages, phone numbers, and website links via the ScamShield app or by visiting the ScamShield website at www.scamshield.gov.sg. Do not share your Telegram account verification codes or any OTP with anyone. 
  
  
• TELL – Tell the authorities, family, and friends about scams. Report any fraudulent transactions to your bank immediately and report any suspicious activity to the relevant online platform.

If you are in doubt, call the 24/7 ScamShield Helpline at 1799 to check. For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamshield.gov.sg. Fighting scams is a community effort. Together, we can ACT Against Scams to safeguard our community!

 ¹MOF’s official social media channels are: facebook.com/MOFsg, instagram.com/mof_sg, tiktok.com/@mofspore, x.com/MOFsg, youtube.com/@MOF-singapore, linkedin.com/company/mofsingapore, and go.gov.sg/mofwhatsapp.

Examples of Fake Telegram Messages on Government Payouts with Phishing Links