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There has been an increasing trend in phishing scams where scammers impersonate banks and target victims through SMSes or Facebook advertisements, the Singapore Police Force said in a press release issued on Friday, Dec. 17.

Since November this year, at least 27 victims have fallen prey to such scams with reported losses amounting to at least S$109,000, the police added.

How do these phishing scams work?

In some of these cases, victims would receive unsolicited SMSes claiming that there were issues with their iBanking accounts and they would be asked to click on a link in order to resolve the issues.

In other cases, they would come across fake bank advertisements on Facebook offering prizes.

Upon clicking on the links embedded within the SMSes and Facebook advertisements, victims would be redirected to fake bank websites and asked to key in their iBanking account login details.

Victims would discover that they had been scammed when they received notifications informing them of unauthorised transactions charged to their bank accounts.

Here are some examples of such phishing scams:

What to do when you receive unsolicited text messages

Members of the public are advised to follow these crime prevention measures:

• Do not click on dubious URL links provided in unsolicited text messages and online advertisements;
• Always verify the authenticity of the information with the official website or sources;
• Never disclose your personal or Internet banking details and OTP to anyone; and
• Report any fraudulent transactions to your bank immediately.

The police implores anyone with information relating to such crimes to call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit the information online here.

For more information on scams, members of the public can visit this website, or call the Anti-Scam Hotline at 1800-722-6688.

Top image via Singapore Police Force 

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