The Police have continued to see an increase in phishing scam cases, with at least 221 reports lodged since January 2020. On a period to period comparison, the number of phishing scams increased to 266 cases in the first five months of 2020, from 9 cases in the same period last year.
Members of the public who have fallen victim to such phishing scams would receive e-mails or text messages purportedly sent from a company they know or trust, such as banks, government agencies, trade unions like NTUC, or companies such as SingPost, StarHub, Netflix and PayPal. These phishing emails and text messages will usually include fake offers or claims to trick you into clicking on an URL link. Some of these fake offers or claims include asking you to make payment for a parcel delivery, verifying your account to avoid service disruptions, or requesting that you provide your details to obtain refunds or take advantage of promotions. Upon clicking on the URL links, victims will be redirected to fraudulent websites where they will be required to provide their credit/debit card details and a One-Time Password (OTP). Most of the victims only realised that they have been scammed when they discovered unauthorised transactions made using their credit/debit card.
Members of the public are advised to follow these crime prevention measures:
a) Do not click on URL links provided in unsolicited emails and text messages;
b) Always verify the authenticity of the information with the official website or sources;
c) Never disclose your personal or Internet banking details and OTP to anyone; and
d) Report any fraudulent credit/debit card charges to your bank and cancel your card immediately.
If you wish to provide any information relating to such phishing scam cases, please call the Police hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. If you require urgent Police assistance, please dial ‘999’. You may also call the anti-scam helpline at 1800-722-6688 or visit www.scamalert.sg to seek scam-related advice. Join the ‘Let’s fight scams’ 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 scam victim.
Picture 1 and 2: Screengrabs of Phishing SMS directing victims to fake website impersonating Singpost
Picture 3: Screengrab of payment page impersonating Singpost requesting victims to enter their payment card details.
Picture 4: Screengrab of Phishing email impersonating Netflix
Picture 5: Screengrab of payment page impersonating Netflix requesting victims to enter their payment card details.
Picture 6 and 7: Screengrabs of Phishing email impersonating Starhub
Picture 8 and 9: Screengrabs of login and payment pages impersonating Starhub requesting victims to enter their payment card details.
Picture 10: Screengrab of Phishing email impersonating Paypal
Picture 11: Screengrab of payment page impersonating Paypal requesting victims to enter their payment card details.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
09 June 2020 @ 2:42 PM