The Police would like to alert members of the public to be vigilant against calls from people claiming to be officers from the Cybersecurity and ICT Governance Directorate (CIGD) of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Since March 2025, there has been at least one case reported, with losses amounting to at least $5,000.
In this scam variant, victims would receive unsolicited calls from local mobile lines without the +65 prefix, claiming to be from CIGD. They would be informed that their personal data had been used for criminal activities in Malaysia. In some cases, the call would be transferred to a second scammer purporting to be from Malaysian law enforcement agencies such as “Malaysian Interpol” or “CID”. The scammers would attempt to obtain the victims’ personal information including bank account details, personal particulars, SingPass password or 2FA OTP, or ask them to transfer money to a bank account to assist in investigations.
SPF would like to highlight that CIGD officers do not contact members of the public as part of their duties. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be a CIGD officer, please do not provide any personal details or effect any transfer of money. If in doubt, call the ScamShield helpline at 1799 to check.
We would also like to inform members of the public that foreign law enforcement agencies do not have powers to conduct investigations in Singapore or direct anyone in Singapore to assist in their investigations.
In addition, foreign law enforcement agencies and Singapore Government officials will never ask members of the public to do the following over the phone or through text message:
- Transfer money to a bank account;
- Provide your banking and CPF-related information or your Singpass password and OTP;
- Click on links that lead to bank websites; or
- Install apps or software from third party websites.
More generally, members of the public should not transfer money or disclose your personal details to unknown persons. They are encouraged to adopt the following precautionary measures:
- ADD – Add the ScamShield App to block scam calls and filter out scam SMSes. Set up security features to protect yourself from scams (e.g. set transaction limits for internet banking transactions and credit/debit card transactions, enable 2FA or multi-factor authentication for e-wallets, use the Money Lock feature provided by your bank to “lock up” a portion of your money so that it cannot be transferred out digitally by anyone in particular scammers).
- CHECK – Check for signs of scams, or with official sources such as the ScamShield App, or the 24/7 ScamShield Helpline at 1799, to determine if the approach to you is a scam.
- TELL – Tell the authorities, family, and friends if you encounter a scam. If you suspect that you have fallen victim, 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. Let’s ACT against scams to safeguard ourselves and our community!
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
13 March 2025 @ 9:35 AM