The Police would like to remind members of the public to remain vigilant against government official impersonation scams involving physical collection of monies or gold bars from scam victims. Since June 2025, at least 80 cases were reported with total losses amounting to at least $6.7 million.
In this scam variant, victims would receive unsolicited calls from scammers impersonating officials from banks (e.g. DBS, Maybank), financial institutions (e.g. NTUC, UnionPay) or government agencies (e.g. ICA).
The scammers would claim that victims had conducted banking or financial transactions, had outstanding premiums associated with a new or expiring insurance policy under victim’s name, or had phone numbers (or other personal/banking information) registered under victim’s details that were found to be involved in fraudulent activities. When victims denied performing such transactions, they would be transferred to another scammer claiming to be a government official (e.g. MAS, SPF, Ministry of Law, China Police). This scammer would accuse victims of being involved in criminal activities (e.g. money laundering).
The scammers would ask victims to withdraw monies, purchase gold bars or declare valuables owned (e.g. jewellery, luxury watches) and meet unknown subjects to hand over these valuables for investigation purposes. In some cases, victims were instructed to place the valuables in discreet locations for unknown subjects to collect. Victims would realise that they had been scammed when the scammers become uncontactable or when they seek verification with SPF.
5. We would like to remind members of the public to NEVER transfer monies, hand monies or other valuables to any unknown persons or persons whose identity you did not verify. NEVER place monies or valuables at a physical location to facilitate subsequent collection.
We would also like to inform members of the public that Singapore Government officials will never ask members of the public to do the following over a phone call:
- Ask you to transfer money;
- Ask you to disclose banking log-in details;
- Ask you to install mobile apps from unofficial app stores;
- Transfer your call to Police
Members of the public are also encouraged to adopt the following precautionary measures:
- ADD – Add the ScamShield App to block calls and filter SMSes. Set transaction limits that are adequate for daily expenses, and lower transaction notification thresholds. Alert the bank immediately of any suspicious activity in your bank account. Activate the Money Lock feature of your bank to “lock up” a portion of your money so that it cannot be transferred out digitally by anyone.
- CHECK – Check for scam signs with official sources such as the ScamShield App. Call and check with the 24/7 ScamShield Helpline at 1799.
- TELL – Tell the authorities, family, and friends if or when you encounter scams. If you suspect that you have fallen victim to a scam, call your bank immediately to block any fraudulent transactions and make a police report.
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!
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
02 July 2025 @ 6:35 PM