35 arrested in anti-scam sweep; Singapore Police and MAS issue urgent advisory on bank officer impersonation

A total of 35 people — in the age range of 17 to 47 years — have been arrested in Singapore in a nationwide anti-scam sweep by law enforcement agencies between September 30 and October 8, as per media reports today. In addition, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) have issued a joint advisory to warn the public about impersonation scams.

A report in The Straits Times today said that those arrested were suspects in “scams that involved impersonating government and bank officials”. The publication reported that “another 23 individuals, including a 16-year-old male, are helping with investigations”.

The majority of those arrested are suspected to have allowed scammers to use their bank accounts or netbanking credentials to be used for fraudulent transactions.

Singapore has seen a spate of impersonation scams in recent months. Criminal rackets have targeted people through calls, e-mail, or SMS by impersonating government agencies such as Singtel, Singapore Post, Singapore Police Force, and Monetary Authority of Singapore.

The targets are reeled in sometimes by the bait of ‘reward point redemption’; sometimes by fake intimation about a ‘detained parcel’; and sometimes by scaring the targets into believing that credit cards issued in their names had been used for ‘suspicious transactions’.

Joint advisory by SPF, MAS on scam variant featuring impersonation of banks

The October 10 joint advisory issued by the Singapore Police Force and the Monetary Authority of Singapore alerted members of the public to “a recent rise in Government Official Impersonation Scams featuring the impersonation of banks and government officials”.

“In September 2024, there have been at least 100 cases reported, with total losses amounting to at least [SGD] 6.7 million,” said the joint advisory.

Explaining how the bank impersonation scam worked, the advisory said: “In this variant, the victim would first receive an unsolicited call from a scammer impersonating a bank officer, typically from DBS, OCBC, UOB or Standard Chartered Bank. The scammer would inform the victim that a credit card has been issued under the victim’s name, or that there were suspicious or fraudulent transactions detected in the victim’s bank account, and would ask the victim to confirm these financial transactions.

“When the victim denies knowledge of such transactions, the scammer would transfer the call to a second scammer who would impersonate a government official (from SPF or MAS).”

To complete the impersonation, the second scammer — the one pretending to be an officer of SPF or MAS — would sometimes conduct a video call with the scam target. The advisory said that on these video calls, the impostors would be “dressed as SPF/MAS officers with fake badges, against a backdrop with the agency’s logo”.

Messaging applications such as WhatsApp were sometimes used to conduct subsequent conversations between the scammer and the target.

“In some instances, the scammers may provide fake warrant cards or fake official documents to lend credence to their deceit,” said the SPF-MAS advisory.

Scam targets would then be intimidated into accepting the demands of the impostors. “The scammers would accuse the victim of being involved in criminal activities such as money laundering and ask the victim to transfer monies to ‘safety accounts’ designated by the government to assist in investigations,” warned the advisory.

“Victims would only realise that they had been scammed when the scammers become uncontactable or when they seek verification of the status of their cases with the banks or SPF,” it added.

Members of the public are encouraged, as per the advisory, to adopt the following precautionary measures against scammers:

● ADD – Add security features (e.g. enable International Call Blocking options on mobile devices, Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) or Multifactor Authentication for online accounts, or Money Lock your bank accounts to further secure a portion of your savings).

● CHECK – 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.

Police will never ask you to transfer your money into a “safety account” with banks or the SPF at the commencement of police investigations.

Never disclose your personal information (including SingPass and CPF-related information), Internet banking and social media account details, and One-Time Passwords (OTP) to anyone through phone, e-mail or SMS/messaging applications. Always monitor the transaction alerts sent by your bank.

● TELL – Tell the authorities, family, and friends if or when you encounter scams. Report and block any suspected scam accounts and chat groups. If you suspect that you have fallen victim to a scam, call your bank immediately to report and block any fraudulent transactions as well as make a police report.

If you have any information relating to such crimes or if you are in doubt, call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit a report online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness. All information will be kept strictly confidential. For urgent police assistance, dial ‘999’.