The Police would like to alert the public to a latest scam campaign where suspicious messages are being sent to the public with the intent to lure the recipients to visit a fake PayNow phishing website.
In this scam campaign, victims would receive a text message stating – “Pay Now: Your certificate expires in 3 days. Renew it now at <URL link> to keep your services active”. Victims who click on the URL embedded in the message would be redirected to a fake PayNow phishing website. The fake website would state that the victim’s PayNow certificate was expiring in a few days and require the victim to key in credit card details and other personal details (e.g. phone number, billing address, name, date of birth, email).
Members of public should note that PayNow does not have a website that allows you to key in personal and credit card details. All details provided to PayNow should be through the banks’ official sites or applications. PayNow does not issue any digital certificates to members of public. If in doubt, PayNow users can contact your respective banks through their official hotlines for assistance.
The Police would also like to advise members of the public to adopt the following precautionary measures:
- ADD – Add the ScamShield app and set security features (e.g. set up transaction limits for internet banking transactions / credit/debit card transactions, enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), Multifactor Authentication for banks and e-wallets, use 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, further protecting your savings from scams). Add and use only official banking apps downloaded from official app stores (Google Play Store or Apple App Store) to make transfers or payments.
- CHECK – Do not use clickable links or QR codes provided by unknown persons. Check for scam signs with official sources such as the ScamShield Helpline (1799). You can also check the legitimacy of suspicious messages, phone numbers and website links via the ScamShield app or visit the ScamShield website at www.scamshield.gov.sg.
- TELL – Tell the authorities, family, and friends about scams. Report the fraudulent advertisements or listings to the respective platforms.
If you have any 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/i-witness. All information will be kept strictly confidential. If you require urgent Police assistance, please dial ‘999’.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the ScamShield Helpline at 1799. Fighting scams is a community effort. Together, we can ACT Against Scams to safeguard our community.
Annex A
Screenshot of a message from scammers with the phishing link▼
Screenshots of the fake PayNow website▼
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
13 December 2024 @ 10:00 PM