KNN my uncle think this hub should be leeserved for the young adults below 30 KNN it is much more worthwhile to be a big fraudster than be a successful grad worker KNN
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IP addresses are NOT logged in this forum so there's no point asking. Please note that this forum is full of homophobes, racists, lunatics, schizophrenics & absolute nut jobs with a smattering of geniuses, Chinese chauvinists, Moderate Muslims and last but not least a couple of "know-it-alls" constantly sprouting their dubious wisdom. If you believe that content generated by unsavory characters might cause you offense PLEASE LEAVE NOW! Sammyboy Admin and Staff are not responsible for your hurt feelings should you choose to read any of the content here. The OTHER forum is HERE so please stop asking.
SG is financial loss/fraud/scam hub. Huat ah!
- Thread starter LITTLEREDDOT
- Start date
James Phang got connections, singapore went gentle on him.
Nearly 470 people lose at least $8.5m in phishing scams involving OCBC Bank
Victims received unsolicited SMSes purporting to be from the bank, claiming that there were issues with their banking accounts. ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
Anjali Raguraman
DEC 30, 2021
SINGAPORE - Since the start of December, at least 469 people have fallen prey to phishing scams involving OCBC Bank, with reported losses totalling at least $8.5 million.
Most of the amount was lost over the past two weeks, said the police in a media release on Thursday evening (Dec 30).
Over the Christmas weekend alone, OCBC said 186 customers lost about $2.7 million.
Victims received unsolicited SMSes purporting to be from the bank, claiming there were issues with their banking accounts and they had to click on a link given in the message to resolve the issue.
The link led to fake bank websites and victims were asked to key in their Internet banking account login details.
Victims received unsolicited SMSes purporting to be from the bank, claiming there were issues with their banking accounts and they had to click on a link given in the message to resolve the issue. PHOTOS: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
They discovered that they had been scammed when they received notifications that there were unauthorised transactions in their bank accounts.
"Once the funds have been fraudulently transferred out of the victim's bank account, it would be challenging and difficult to recover the stolen monies," said the police.
They added that OCBC Bank has warned its customers about the phishing SMSes via several channels, including its online banking platforms, social media page and media advisories.
Having seen an increase in such phishing scams, the police are urging the public to follow crime prevention measures.
First, do not click on dubious URL links provided in unsolicited text messages. OCBC will not send SMSes containing bit.Iy links.
Second, always verify the authenticity of the information with the official website or sources.
Third, never disclose your personal or Internet banking details and one-time password to anyone.
Lastly, fraudulent transactions should be reported to your bank immediately.
The police urge anyone with information relating to such crimes to call their hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online. Those who require urgent police assistance should dial 999.
Despite advisories and warnings issued by the authorities throughout the year, scams of different varieties continue to be a scourge in Singapore.
Consumers more likely to fall victim to phishing SMSes, says expert
$12m gone if not for vigilant S'pore bank staff
According to figures released by the police in end-August, scam victims lost $168 million to conmen in the top 10 scam categories in the first six months of this year alone.
This was over 2½ times the amount lost to scammers in the same period in 2020.
Loan scams had the highest number of reported cases among scam types, with victims cheated of $10.6 million. This was followed by e-commerce scams, which saw victims lose $2.4 million.
Job and investment scams also surged significantly, with victims having lost $6.5 million, compared with last year’s $60,000.
Investment scam victims, on the other hand, lost $66.2 million, which was more than triple the $21.6 million in the same period last year.
Targeted scams: Beware of 'free gifts' from well-known brands for doing surveys
Over 300 victims lose $760,000 to phishing scams related to delivery firms
The year-end shopping season has also seen the emergence of non-banking-related phishing scams.
Since last month, more than 300 people have fallen prey to phishing scams involving delivery companies, amid the slew of year-end online shopping events.
As at Dec 20, the police said there were at least 341 victims, who made losses amounting to at least $759,000.
These victims typically received e-mails and text messages from scammers impersonating delivery companies such as SingPost, claiming that there were outstanding payments that had to be made before the parcel could be delivered.
Victims were told to click on URL links to make payment, where they were asked to provide their card details and a one-time password. It was only later that they realised unauthorised transactions had been made with their card.
Tips to avoid online shopping scams
About $35,000 lost to new type of scam where scammers pose as buyers on online marketplaces
OCBC's advice to customers
- The bank will never send an SMS to inform customers about account closures or being locked out of their account.- It will not send an SMS with a link to reactivate accounts.
- Do not click on links in an SMS. Instead, access only the bank's portal via its mobile banking app or its website.
- Do not divulge banking login credentials or one-time passwords to anyone, or key such confidential information into unverified webpages.
- Customers who are in doubt about the authenticity of any SMSes received are advised to contact OCBC at 6363-3333.
Man pleads guilty to cheating Iras into disbursing over $11.8 million in grants
Lim Chit Foo created over 200 shell companies to apply for grants from the taxman. ST PHOTO: GIN TAY
Wong Shiying
UPDATED
JAN 13, 2022
SINGAPORE - A 38-year-old businessman was convicted of cheating the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) of over $11.8 million through a scheme in which he created over 200 shell companies to apply for grants from the taxman.
Lim Chit Foo pleaded guilty to 20 cheating charges on Wednesday (Jan 12) and will have another 411 similar charges taken into consideration for his sentencing on Jan 26. He was previously sentenced in January 2019 to 40 months' jail for obstruction of justice in relation to the same crimes.
The court heard that Lim had two accomplices - Wang Jiao, 39, and Li Dan, 38.
Sometime before April 2015, Lim hatched a plan to make false claims under the Productivity and Innovation Credit (PIC) scheme, which granted cash payouts and bonuses to eligible companies to spur productivity.
From 2015 to 2016, the trio created over 200 shell companies and paid people to be the nominee directors of these companies.
They then submitted false claims under the PIC scheme for fictitious expenses incurred by the shell companies in the form of software and Web-based system purchases.
In one instance, Wang and Li got to know one Chua Phoi Yong and told him that they needed a Singaporean who was not bankrupt to set up companies for them.
Li proposed to set up the companies in Chua's name and promised Chua that if the companies were profitable, he would get a cut of the profits.
Chua agreed and gave the fraudsters his Singpass ID and password to set up the companies.
Between Oct 28, 2015 and May 25, 2016, Chua was appointed the director of G & G Prestige. On Li's instructions, he opened a bank account for the company and pre-signed blank cheques so Li could withdraw money from the account at any time.
Wang and Li then submitted fraudulent PIC claims to Iras under the name of G & G.
Iras approved the fictitious claims and disbursed nearly $45,000 to the company's bank account on Jan 22, 2016.
The trio repeated this mode of operation with more than 200 shell companies, and received around $11,793,000 from Iras in PIC cash payouts.
36 charged over involvement in submission of $11.8 million worth of false claims to Iras
Businessman cheats 9 investors then steals $260,000 to pay them back
Court documents state that in September 2016, a man working with the trio had submitted documents to Iras which the agency suspected were forged. Investigations found that there were over 400 PIC applications submitted by the shell companies between 2015 and 2016.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Eric Hu told the court that only around $455,000 in funds has been recovered to date.
Mr Hu added that Iras would have disbursed a further $8,487,000 to the swindlers had their PIC applications for these claims been successful.
For each count of abetment by conspiracy to commit cheating, Lim can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined.
Regarding his previous conviction, he had instigated at least three employees and a business partner to give false information to the police to cover up his fraudulent applications for PIC grants.
Correction note: An earlier version of this article stated that a whistleblower working with the trio had reported their wrongdoings to Iras. This has been corrected. We are sorry for the error.
The prosecution, which earlier said the sum of money cheated was over $11.7 million, has also clarified that it should be over $11.8 million.
Forum: Iras should account for failure to detect grant fraud
Jan 18, 2022
That a man working with two accomplices could so easily outsmart the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore's (Iras) management review system to fraudulently secure a staggering $11.8 million of grants under the Productivity and Innovation Credit scheme is mind-boggling (Man pleads guilty to cheating Iras into giving $11.8m in grants, Jan 13).
The serious crimes have besmirched Iras' reputation as an institution entrusted with the collection and disbursement of public funds.
Accordingly, I believe Iras has a social obligation to publicly account for the failure of its system to detect such fraud, and assure the public that necessary steps have been taken or will be taken to render it more stringent and robust to prevent a recurrence.
Ang Ah Lay
to some retards , this is the only and holy truth. and these retards will make use of every opportunity to make such derogatory rhetoric.
if such opportunity does not exist , the more tenacious retards would create one and post it here.
Job scams the next big worry, with $6.5m lost in first half of 2021: Anti-Scam Centre
Superintendent of Police Michelle Tay (right) said the pandemic has only aggravated the problem, with digital payments acting as a double-edged sword.
ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
David Sun and Jessie Lim
JAN 26, 2022
SINGAPORE - The number of reported job scams during the Covid-19 pandemic has skyrocketed, warned the police, as more people are lured by the convenience of easy jobs promising high commissions.
The revelation comes even as people are still reeling from the shock of at least $8.5 million that nearly 470 OCBC Bank customers lost last year. Some had savings in the six figures wiped out.
In an exclusive interview with The Straits Times last week, Superintendent of Police Michelle Tay, the head of the Anti-Scam Centre, said that police are seeing a continued increase in the number of victims falling prey to job scams.
This is despite outreach efforts being beefed up with more ammunition in the form of technology.
In the first six months of last year, there were 658 cases of job scams - a 16-fold increase from just 40 in the same period in 2020.
Victims of such scams lost about $6.5 million between January and June last year, up from about $60,000 in the same period the year before.
The largest sum lost by a single victim in a job scam in the first half of last year was about $676,000.
Supt Tay said the pandemic has only aggravated the problem, with digital payments acting as a double-edged sword.
She said: "During Covid-19, the use of contact-free digital payments increased.
"This enhances our convenience, but at the same time enhances the scammers' modes of operations. They can easily create pseudo bank accounts to move funds."
Supt Tay outlined the five types of job scams the centre has encountered in recent months, stressing that job scams are of particular concern as more people work from home.
The scams mostly involved victims being able to purportedly earn commissions by simply completing tasks on websites or mobile applications.
However, the victims would at some point be told they needed to transfer a sum of money to receive such tasks and get their payouts.
The first type involved victims being instructed to download unverified mobile applications.
They are tasked to transfer funds in the form of cryptocurrency into their purported job accounts and are promised commission for completing tasks that appear to help businesses.
Victims realise they have been scammed after they try to withdraw the commission from their accounts.
The second type appears to have evolved from the first - those who fall victim to the first and try to quit and cash out would be sent warning letters claiming to bear the letterheads of the local authorities.
Victims are pressured into making further transfers into bank accounts or cryptocurrency wallets or face legal action.
There are also scams that involve supposed affiliate marketing and the sale of movie tickets, operating in a similar fashion as the first type of scam.
The fifth and last type, which is the most recent to have emerged, appears to be the most insidious. In a warning earlier this month, the police said scammers invited victims to participate in jobs involving the sale of products on a fake mobile app called Shopee Pay.
The app, which is unrelated to the e-commerce platform Shopee, looks legitimate as scammers are spoofing an actual platform.
The unverified app is a spoof of Shopee’s real digital wallet called ShopeePay, which is accessed through the real Shopee app. Shopee does not have a standalone app for its digital wallet.
Within a month, at least 11 people had already lost more than $50,000 in total, after they were tricked into transferring funds to cryptocurrency wallets.
With fraudsters upping their game and the number of victims piling up, Supt Tay said, the authorities have turned to technology in their fight against scams.
"We have leveraged technology and are streamlining internal processes to help us cope with the workload."
For example, the Anti-Scam Centre has added robotic process automation to its arsenal, with the technology driving Project Combat (Centralised Operational Messaging Bot, Addressing Threats), which was launched on July 17 last year.
Through collaboration with the Singapore Police Force's intelligence and land division units, the centre is able to detect numerous potential victims of job scams.
It used to take an average of 45 minutes to contact and warn just one person.
Project Combat uses robotic process automation to send out targeted SMS advisories to select groups all at once, enabling them to reach hundreds of people in mere minutes.
The centre has conducted more than 6,900 interventions this way through Project Combat.
The technology has freed up more time and resources for officers to take on other important tasks such as fund tracing.
Supt Tay added that aside from job scams, Project Combat has been expanded to also tackle investment scams.
This is because potential victims of investment scams are reached by scammers in a similar fashion as those of job scams, with scammers sending unsolicited messages to them in large chat groups.
Similar automated warning messages the centre sends to potential victims of potential job scams can thus also be sent to potential victims of investment scams.
But there are limits to what can be done to recover funds victims transfer to scammers, many of whom are based overseas.
Supt Tay urged members of the public to heed the warnings of the authorities and to take the threat of scams seriously.
She said: "The earlier you report, the earlier we can take intervention action to intercept the funds.
"Everyone has a role to play to safeguard ourselves and our loved ones. Your vigilance is our first line of defence."
Flier supposedly giving out FairPrice vouchers not created or endorsed by supermarket
The flyer has a QR code that leads to an online financial survey. PHOTO: NTUC FAIRPRICE/FACEBOOK
Clement Yong
JAN 24, 2022,
SINGAPORE - A flier being distributed that purports to give away free FairPrice vouchers is not from the supermarket chain, said FairPrice.
The Chinese New Year flier instructs people to scan a QR code to an online financial survey to receive $20 worth of FairPrice vouchers. It is not clear if actual FairPrice vouchers are being given out.
In a Facebook post on Monday (Jan 24), FairPrice said the fliers are of unknown origin. It is not currently running any promotion that requires users to complete a survey to obtain gift vouchers, it added.
"We would like to clarify that this flier and its attached promotion is neither created nor endorsed by FairPrice," said the supermarket.
There have been a slew of high-profile scams recently, and organisations are on high alert.
Nearly 470 OCBC customers lost at least $8.5 million in total last December in an SMS phishing scam. Some lost life savings built up over the years for their families.
FairPrice has also been targeted by scams.
In 2018, it had to clarify that a message telling people that it was giving out gift cards worth $400 for its 45th anniversary was a scam.
In 2016, a phishing scam claimed to offer people who filled in an online survey $500 in FairPrice vouchers.
Those who are unsure about the veracity of FairPrice-related information can e-mail the supermarket chain at [email protected] or call it on 6380-5858.
Iras warns of tax reimbursement phishing scam website
The fake website at iras.gov-sg.web.do uses the Iras logo and claims to be a "tax reimbursement form". ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
Rei Kurohi
Tech Correspondent
JAN 24, 2022
SINGAPORE - The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) on Monday (Jan 24) warned of a scam involving a fake website that invites users to submit personal data to get a tax reimbursement.
The fake website at iras.gov-sg.web.do uses the Iras logo and claims to be a "tax reimbursement form".
It offers a tax refund of about $1,000 and asks for a user's full name, e-mail address and credit or debit card details.
The real Iras website can be found at iras.gov.sg.
"Please do not respond, provide any personal details, make any payment or follow any instructions provided," Iras said. It urged those who had previously done so to lodge a police report.
Iras added that any genuine corporate income tax and goods and services tax (GST) refunds will be credited directly to the user's bank account.
For property tax and personal income tax refunds, Iras will either credit the refund directly to the user's bank account, through telegraphic transfer or send cheques if they do not pay taxes via the electronic direct debit system Giro.
"If Iras requires information from you, Iras will not disclose nor solicit your personal details or any confidential information via e-mail or unsecured web links," said the authority.
"Iras officers will direct you to use the relevant forms secured by Singpass login or sign-up links located on the Iras website to furnish your personal details and bank account information, if required."
The warning comes as the tax filing period approaches. Jan 31 is the deadline for declaring donations, filing GST returns and paying property tax bills.
Scams in general, including those targeting taxpayers, have also been on the rise in recent weeks.
Last Friday, Iras warned of a scam e-mail purportedly sent by Iras and signed by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue, Mr Ng Wai Choong, where recipients are told to buy an "approval pass" to receive funds from billionaire Bill Gates.
OCBC Bank said last Wednesday that it will make goodwill payouts to all customers affected by a recent spate of SMS phishing scams. Nearly 470 customers lost at least $8.5 million in total to such scams last month.
At least 1,200 phishing scams reported since December as e-wallet con makes a comeback
The callers would claim to be from a government agency such as the Singapore Police Force or Ministry of Manpower. PHOTO: ST FILE
Shermaine Ang
JAN 13, 2022
SINGAPORE - Since December last year, at least 1,200 cases of phishing scams have been reported, and a scam variant involving e-wallet applications has re-emerged, said the police on Thursday (Jan 13).
The scammers would apply for e-wallets with information gathered from victims who had received unsolicited calls on messaging applications such as WhatsApp, Viber and IMO, the police said in a media release.
It is not known how many of the 1,200 cases were e-wallet scams.
The callers would claim to be from a government agency such as the Singapore Police Force or Ministry of Manpower. They would often display the official insignia or profile pictures of officers from these agencies. Some would even start a video call while wearing a uniform similar to those worn by police officers.
They would ask victims to provide their personal information, banking credentials and one-time password (OTP) for verification purposes or to assist in investigations.
The scammers would then create an e-wallet using apps such as DBS PayLah!, Singtel Dash or GrabPay in the victim's name, and top up the e-wallet using the victim's bank account.
In some cases, victims were told to do cash top-ups to the e-wallets at AXS machines or convenience stores.
They would later receive notifications that various transactions had been made from their bank account via the e-wallet. The victims would realise they had been scammed only when they contacted their bank to verify these transactions.
Noting that the calls were not made by their officers, the police said: "Government agencies will never contact members of the public via messaging applications to obtain personal information, banking credentials or OTPs."
They advise anyone who receives unsolicited calls to do the following:
- Ignore the instructions. No government agency will obtain personal information through a phone call.
- Never disclose personal or Internet banking details, including NRIC, NRIC issue date and OTP, to anyone.
- Always verify the authenticity of the information by contacting the relevant government agencies on their official hotline.
- Report any fraudulent transactions to your bank immediately.
Those who require urgent police assistance can call 999.
For more information on scams, the public can visit the Scam Alert website or call the Anti-Scam Hotline on 1800-722-6688.
They can also sign up to receive up-to-date messages at the Scam Alert website.
At least 11 people lose $53k to job scam involving fake mobile app Shopee Pay
In some instances, victims would be told that the Singapore Monetary Authority had frozen their Shopee Pay accounts.
PHOTOS: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
Rosalind Ang
JAN 7, 2022
SINGAPORE - Job seekers should watch out for a new scam on social media platforms that has swindled at least 11 victims of no less than $53,000 since December.
The police warned on Friday (Jan 7) that it is a new variant of the job scam. It invites victims to participate in jobs that promise commissions through the sale of products on a fake mobile app called Shopee Pay.
The app is unrelated to the e-commerce platform Shopee.
The victims were usually introduced to the job by friends or after being approached on social media platforms.
The victims would be instructed to download the fake Shopee Pay mobile app through a website address provided to them.
To fulfil the job requirements and to transact within the fake mobile app, the victims were told to deposit funds into their Shopee Pay accounts by buying cryptocurrency and transferring them to cryptocurrency wallet addresses indicated within the app.
In some instances, the cryptocurrency would be bought through peer-to-peer transactions via bank transfer or PayNow, before being transferred to the scammers' cryptocurrency wallets.
After the transactions were completed, the fake mobile app would reflect that funds were available for the jobs.
Victims would then have to place items into their carts and pay with the funds in their accounts.
They would then earn commissions for completing the orders, which would be reflected in the app.
In some instances, victims would be told that the Singapore Monetary Authority had frozen their Shopee Pay accounts and further fund top-ups were needed to release funds from their accounts.
Victims eventually discovered that they had been scammed when they could not withdraw the commissions reflected in their Shopee Pay accounts.
Shopee has confirmed that its e-commerce shopping platform is not affiliated to the Shopee Pay mobile app, and that its e-wallet feature, ShopeePay, is accessible only on its official app, said the police.
The police advise members of the public to not accept "dubious job offers that offer lucrative returns for minimal efforts", to not download apps from unverified sources and to not send money to or transact in cryptocurrencies with anyone they do not know personally or have not met in person.
Those with information on such crimes can call the police hotline on 1800-255-0000 or submit it online. They can also dial 999 for urgent police assistance.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit this website or call the anti-scam hotline on 1800-722-6688.
S'pore is known as a trustworthy place, so why are there so many scams?
It may be precisely because Singapore has a high-trust society that it attracts scammers
Jeremy Au Yong
Mobile Editor
In a way, spotting a scam is a bit like driving. Everyone overestimates their ability, and fatigue and stress make you worse at it. PHOTO: PEXELS
JAN 23, 2022
My friend - a highly educated digital native in her 30s - has the profile of someone most would expect not to be a victim of a scam.
And in fact, despite having lived in cities in Latin America and Africa that many Singaporeans would consider quite dangerous, she never even came close to getting scammed. Shot, yes, but never cheated.
Then she moved here.
It began last year when she wanted to start a crowdfunding campaign to help a friend with medical bills. She searched for the popular fund-raising website gofundme.com on Google, clicked on the link that popped up, and set up her campaign.
She shared it with a group of her friends and within days had successfully raised a few thousand dollars. So far so good.
When the time came to close the campaign, she went to close the site and was puzzled when the site wouldn't let her log in.
She discovered to her horror that she never started a campaign on gofundme.com. In her haste to start the campaign, she had clicked on a link for a site that looked like it but had changed the name ever so slightly.
Further checking would reveal that Scamadviser, a scam-fighting website, rated that other crowdfunding site as "suspicious", and said the site's domain was registered with a company that has a high percentage of spammers and fraud sites. The site would also change its name a few months later.
(The silver lining is that this site did not disappear with all the money. It charged a fee nearly 10 times that of gofundme - but it could have been much worse.)
As you can imagine, there was some disbelief when she recounted this story. And victims of scams can tell you that compassionate understanding is not typically the general reaction to such tales.
How was it possible, people would ask, that she could have missed the incorrect name for so many days? And how did so many of her friends not point it out as well?
There are no good answers to questions like these. In hindsight, the ploy always seems so obvious.
ST ILLUSTRATION: CEL GULAPA
In a way, spotting a scam is a bit like driving. Everyone overestimates their ability, and fatigue and stress make you worse at it.
One thing I learnt from that episode is that everyone can be a victim, including those who believe they are immune.
But I also hypothesise that being in Singapore had made her more susceptible to falling for the ruse.
It's not that the incidence of cyber crime here is especially high when compared globally. It's just that being in Singapore may have meant she wasn't as vigilant as she should have been.
She got used to trusting people.
Powered by trust
It can be tempting to think that it really would be foolish for anyone to trust anyone else at this point of human civilisation.After all, almost since money had value, humans have been trying to dishonestly liberate each other of it.
History is littered with all manner of audacious hustles, and each time, people have demonstrated no lack of willingness to trust each other again.
People have sold bridges that do not belong to them; promoted investments to fictional tropical islands; and even convinced others that they are princes from a country that has been a federal republic since the 1960s. And yet, every once in a while, you will find a similar scam working again.
4 common types of scams and how to recognise them
Is contactless payment safe? 5 tips to protect yourself in the wake of OCBC SMS scams
Ponzi schemes are a century old and one would argue society has really not developed any significant defences to it.
Most scams generally depend on some unchanging forces. Respect for authority, for instance.
Nearly all your Internet scammers present themselves as some sort of authority figure.
In the OCBC case, they were masquerading as the bank. In others, they pretend to be the police, your telco or, in this time of pandemic, the Ministry of Health.
I get at least two calls a day from a recorded voice claiming to be from the health ministry, imploring me to press 3. I spend more time on the phone with the "press 3" woman than my own mother.
After establishing some sort of authority, the scammer's other move is to create a sense of urgency.
Maybe they tell you about a Covid-19 infection or a bunch of unpaid bills, maybe it's a pile of gold in some vault that is about to be confiscated - whatever it is, if you don't act soon, you're going to lose out on something good or have something bad happen to you.
The difference between your pre-Internet scams and your more modern ones is the scale. While in the past, scammers could seriously cultivate one target at a time, these days, scammers can hit millions of people at the click of a button.
That means the swindle can be a bit cruder. It doesn't matter if nearly everyone rejects it. All they really need is a small number of gullible people to bite.
And as the notorious showman and grifter P.T. Barnum famously said: "There's a sucker born every minute."
For the record, it is likely he never said this. Some people claimed he did and a bunch of people did not bother to verify it.
And that brings us back to trust, which is really what underpins all these scams through the years. Though methods and the ruses have changed, trust hasn't changed much at all.
As author Amy Reading noted, the capacity for gullibility "is unchanging over time because it is a function of how we are programmed, by biology and culture, to take in the external world. Any of our tools of empiricism, which generally hold us in pretty good stead, can also be used against us".
She was talking about Americans, but that also starts to explain why Singapore, despite being a high-trust society, can't seem to rid itself of the scam problem.
The Canadian paradox
Former Bank of England regulatory economist Dan Davies argues that it is precisely the high-trust societies that tend to become the hot spots for fraud.In his book about financial crimes, Lying For Money, he calls it the "Canadian paradox".
He writes: "Why is it that the Canadian financial sector is so fraud-ridden that Joe Queenan, writing in Forbes magazine in 1985, nicknamed Vancouver the 'Scam Capital of the World', while shipowners in Greece will regularly do multimillion-dollar deals on a handshake?
"It is much more difficult to be a fraudster in a society in which people do business only with relatives or where commerce is based on family networks going back for centuries. It is much easier to carry out a securities fraud in a market where dishonesty is the rare exception rather than the everyday rule."
Intuitively, the Canadian paradox could just as well be a Singaporean one. People who normally trust that laws are upheld, that institutions are upstanding and that people they meet every day are generally honest, might not second-guess intentions as much.
It is, after all, impossible to verify everything, so every society decides how it balances what to check and what to take at face value.
In high-trust societies, that balance tips more towards trust.
Is the answer then to tip the balance the other way? Should people stop being so trusting here and should companies build in more levels of checks and verification?
Well, this is where it starts to get a little complicated.
Certainly we want to take all possible steps to make the lives of scammers as difficult as possible.
But we also have to be aware that we will likely never be able to plug every single loophole that we manage to squeeze out every scam.
Nor would we actually want to.
Scammers rely on some degree of trust to operate, but so does the legitimate non-scammer economy.
A society in which people do not trust each other is not just one where scammers fail to thrive, it is one where society and the economy cannot thrive. If every deal is high risk and it is best to just do handshake deals with close friends and family, there is just going to be fewer deals done.
Put another way, trust may create opportunities for scammers to steal wealth, but without it, there might not be any wealth to steal.
As Mr Davies notes, though fraud is expensive, there is a cost to trying to prevent it.
"The cost of dishonesty itself is inseparable from the extent to which bad actors drive out good. The trade-off that we need to make at the level of society is between these two quantities."
So where does that leave us?
Setting up safeguards and educating the public are important and are efforts that need to continue.
But it may well be that as long as we still tend to trust each other - and it will be a sad day if a time comes when this is no longer true - scams will never really go away.
IRAS warns of scam e-mail telling recipients to buy pass to receive funds from Bill Gates
Iras advised the public to ignore the scam e-mail. PHOTO: IRAS
Isabelle Liew
JAN 21, 2022
SINGAPORE - The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) on Friday (Jan 21) warned of a scam e-mail where recipients are told to buy an "approval pass" to receive funds from billionaire Bill Gates.
The e-mail would purportedly be from Iras, signed off in the name of the Commissioner of Inland Revenue, Mr Ng Wai Choong.
The e-mail would inform the recipients that their bank accounts had been blocked from receiving an unverified international funds transfer of $20 million from Mr Gates, co-founder of software giant Microsoft. He has a foundation, named after him and former wife Melinda, that does philanthropic work.
The recipients would be instructed to get a letter of confirmation from "the Bill Gate foundation" or buy an "international approval pass" to facilitate the transfer.
Iras advised the public to ignore the scam e-mail.
The tax authority said: "Please do not respond, provide any personal details, make any payment or follow any instructions by the sender."
Those who have done so are advised to lodge a police report.
The latest scam comes after news that OCBC Bank will make goodwill payouts to all customers affected by SMS phishing scams. Nearly 470 customers lost at least $8.5 million in total last month.
Iras previously warned of another scam e-mail in November last year, which had documents attached that may have contained computer viruses.
The e-mail was sent from "Singapore Government Tax Authority" and claimed that recipients had unpaid taxes.
There was another scam e-mail last May where scammers claimed to have received full payment of a tax evasion penalty from the recipient. Recipients were told to open a new bank account, or reply to the e-mail sender with their bank account details.
Last August, Iras also highlighted suspicious WhatsApp calls in which scammers would inform recipients that they faced a penalty for unpaid taxes.
The scammers would also ask to verify credit card details for the payment of the penalty.
Iras has said it does not send taxpayers' payment statements and tax notices over e-mail. It also does not make calls to taxpayers through messaging platforms like WhatsApp.
The authority said it will not request that taxpayers open a new bank account, nor ask to verify credit card or bank account details over the phone.
DBS Bank warns of SMS phishing scam
DBS urged customers not to click on links sent through SMS messages. PHOTO: ST FILE
Rei Kurohi
JAN 19, 2022
SINGAPORE - DBS Bank on Wednesday (Jan 19) warned its customers about a fake SMS being sent to users claiming to be from the bank.
The scam involves a message claiming that a user's account has been temporarily suspended and inviting users to visit a fake website designed to steal their log-in details and one-time passwords (OTPs).
DBS urged customers not to click on links sent through SMS messages.
"DBS will never ask for your account details or OTP over the phone, e-mail or SMS," the bank said in a Facebook post.
"Please be assured that we are actively taking down such phishing sites."
SMS phishing scams have been in the spotlight recently after nearly 470 OCBC Bank customers fell victim to a similar ruse last month and lost at least $8.5 million.
OCBC said on Wednesday it will make "goodwill payouts" to all affected customers covering the full amounts lost.
Supreme Court warns against phishing e-mails containing false court letters
The e-mails usually request personal information of individuals. PHOTO: ST FILE
Rosalind Ang
JAN 19, 2022
SINGAPORE - There has been a series of phishing e-mails purportedly sent from the courts asking people for personal information like NRIC numbers and names, warned the Supreme Court on Wednesday (Jan 19).
The e-mails informed recipients that they were being served a letter from the court, with the document shared via file hosting service Dropbox Business.
The phishing e-mail is sent from [email protected] by the "Supreme Judiciary Council" and contains a PDF attachment named "GOV.SG-LETTER011822.PDF".
The e-mails usually request personal information such as name and identification details including NRIC or the FIN number of individuals.
Anyone who receives such an e-mail should not respond to it nor disclose any personal or banking details to the sender, said the Supreme Court.
It also urged members of the public to exercise caution and not download any attachment or click on any URL link provided in the e-mail.
The courts do not use the @judiciary.gov.sg domain name to send e-mails to members of the public nor request information to be sent via Dropbox Business. Additionally, only authorised process servers can serve legal documents.
If one's attendance is required in court or if one is required to provide information, they will receive a registrar's notice or correspondence from court.
Those with case-related queries can contact the Supreme Court Registry by e-mailing [email protected] or call 6557-7495.
Those who wish to provide information related to such phishing e-mails can call the police hotline on 1800-255-0000 or submit it online.
For advice relating to scams, people may also call the anti-scam he
Police warn of fake bank hotlines in Google search advertisements, victims lost $495,000
The scammers would post fake advertisements on Google Search so that they would appear when people searched for banks' contact numbers. PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
Isabelle Liew
JAN 19, 2022,
SINGAPORE - The police have warned of scam advertisements on Google search where fake bank hotlines appear when users search for banks' contact numbers.
Since last month, at least 15 victims have fallen for such scams, the police said in a statement on Wednesday (Jan 19).
The losses amounted to at least $495,000.
In such cases, the victims wanted to seek advice from the banks and searched for the banks' contact numbers. They would then come across the scam advertisement's fake contact numbers, which appeared as the first few search results on Google search.
The victims would call the fake number and speak to a scammer impersonating as bank staff.
"After sharing the reasons for contacting the bank, victims would be informed that there were issues with their bank account, credit/debit cards or loan amount," the police said.
The victims were then instructed to temporarily transfer their funds to bank accounts provided by the scammer, under the pretext of resolving their bank account or credit or debit card issue, or to make a payment for an outstanding loan.
In some cases, victims received an SMS message with the sender name showing that of the bank - spoofed by the scammers.
The message claimed that the bank was facilitating a reset of the victims' bank account "as part of the 'Let's Fight Scam' campaign by the Anti-Scam Centre and Singapore Police Force".
Other messages also stated that the victim needed to transfer money for early loan settlement.
The police said: "Victims would only realise that they had been scammed when they contacted the bank via the authentic hotline to verify the new bank account number or when the bank contacted them to verify the reason for the large sum of money transferred."
A Google spokesman said they are working to ensure that users’ ad experiences are safe.
“If we find advertisers who violate our policies or misrepresent themselves, we take quick action,” he said, noting the company’s advertiser identity verification function, which requires advertisers to verify their legal name with Google. Their name and location will then be displayed on the ad.
He added that Google will continue to roll out the function to all advertisers on its platforms.
The police advised members of the public to always verify information with numbers listed on official bank websites, or behind the cards issued by the banks.
In some cases, victims would receive an SMS claiming the bank was facilitating a reset of their bank account. PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
Never transfer funds into bank accounts belonging to a stranger, and never disclose personal information or banking details and one-time passwords to anyone, the police added.
Any fraudulent transactions should be reported to the bank immediately.
Those with information on such scams can call the police on 1800-255-0000 or submit it at the police website.
More scam-related advice can be found via the anti-scam hotline on 1800-722-6688 or at the anti-scam website.
Transfer to a temporary account? How more ter nao can these sinkies be ? Imuho they doesn't even qualify to own that sum of money I.e good riddance.Police warn of fake bank hotlines in Google search advertisements, victims lost $495,000
The scammers would post fake advertisements on Google Search so that they would appear when people searched for banks' contact numbers. PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
Isabelle Liew
JAN 19, 2022,
SINGAPORE - The police have warned of scam advertisements on Google search where fake bank hotlines appear when users search for banks' contact numbers.
Since last month, at least 15 victims have fallen for such scams, the police said in a statement on Wednesday (Jan 19).
The losses amounted to at least $495,000.
In such cases, the victims wanted to seek advice from the banks and searched for the banks' contact numbers. They would then come across the scam advertisement's fake contact numbers, which appeared as the first few search results on Google search.
The victims would call the fake number and speak to a scammer impersonating as bank staff.
"After sharing the reasons for contacting the bank, victims would be informed that there were issues with their bank account, credit/debit cards or loan amount," the police said.
The victims were then instructed to temporarily transfer their funds to bank accounts provided by the scammer, under the pretext of resolving their bank account or credit or debit card issue, or to make a payment for an outstanding loan.
In some cases, victims received an SMS message with the sender name showing that of the bank - spoofed by the scammers.
The message claimed that the bank was facilitating a reset of the victims' bank account "as part of the 'Let's Fight Scam' campaign by the Anti-Scam Centre and Singapore Police Force".
Other messages also stated that the victim needed to transfer money for early loan settlement.
The police said: "Victims would only realise that they had been scammed when they contacted the bank via the authentic hotline to verify the new bank account number or when the bank contacted them to verify the reason for the large sum of money transferred."
A Google spokesman said they are working to ensure that users’ ad experiences are safe.
“If we find advertisers who violate our policies or misrepresent themselves, we take quick action,” he said, noting the company’s advertiser identity verification function, which requires advertisers to verify their legal name with Google. Their name and location will then be displayed on the ad.
He added that Google will continue to roll out the function to all advertisers on its platforms.
The police advised members of the public to always verify information with numbers listed on official bank websites, or behind the cards issued by the banks.
In some cases, victims would receive an SMS claiming the bank was facilitating a reset of their bank account. PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
Never transfer funds into bank accounts belonging to a stranger, and never disclose personal information or banking details and one-time passwords to anyone, the police added.
Any fraudulent transactions should be reported to the bank immediately.
Those with information on such scams can call the police on 1800-255-0000 or submit it at the police website.
More scam-related advice can be found via the anti-scam hotline on 1800-722-6688 or at the anti-scam website.
Eh so many scams warning. Imuho more advisable for ter nao sinkies to be a monk and end the sorrow.
Forum: Insurer asked for credit card CVV over the phone
Jan 27, 2022
While individuals should do their best to protect confidential information such as passwords and PINs, businesses and other organisations that process payments must also help protect their customers' personal information.
My wife bought a foreign domestic worker insurance plan from a local insurer over the phone. The salesman asked for her credit card details, including the card verification value (CVV), to process the payment. She did as instructed.
Based on my experience in making credit card payments by phone, I know that such payments can be processed without the CVV.
When I asked the insurer about this, it claimed that the CVV was needed for "immediate payment" to facilitate the work permit processing, although our helper's permit was still valid for another month so there was no urgency.
According to the written reply from the insurer, "our telesales executive can ask for our customers' credit card CVV for the purpose of payment transaction, and there is no restriction on us doing so".
My wife informed the bank that issued the credit card, and was advised that the CVV is confidential and should not be shared with anyone. It cancelled her card immediately as its security had been compromised.
Francis Yong
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