Singaporean authorities have issued a warning a few surge in scams the place people impersonate workers from Shopee, UnionPay, and the Financial Authority of Singapore (MAS).
Since January 2025, victims have misplaced at the least S$1.4 million throughout 12 reported instances.
The rip-off usually begins with a name from somebody claiming to be a Shopee worker, who falsely informs the sufferer that that they had beforehand signed up for an insurance coverage coverage and now face recurring expenses.
The sufferer is then transferred to a supposed UnionPay consultant, who requests private and banking data below the pretense of verifying coverage particulars.
The sufferer is then instructed that except they cancel the coverage, recurring charges shall be deducted from their checking account.
To course of the cancellation, the scammer instructs them to switch funds for “safe-keeping” utilizing WhatsApp’s screen-sharing perform.
In some instances, a 3rd scammer posing as an MAS officer claims the sufferer’s financial institution accounts are concerned in cash laundering actions and calls for a switch to help with investigations.
Faux courtroom orders are despatched by means of WhatsApp to make the request seem authentic.
Victims realise they’ve been scammed when the fraudsters grow to be unreachable or when they don’t obtain the promised refunds.
Shopee, UnionPay, and MAS have reiterated that they’ll by no means request private data or funds by means of unsolicited calls, emails, WhatsApp messages, or SMS.
Authorities urge the general public to be cautious, keep away from sharing private particulars or transferring cash to unknown people, and confirm any suspicious requests by means of official sources.
They advocate utilizing the ScamShield app to dam rip-off calls and messages, setting transaction limits, and activating the Cash Lock characteristic in financial institution accounts.
Those that suspect they’ve fallen sufferer to a rip-off ought to contact their financial institution instantly to dam fraudulent transactions and report the case to the police.
Extra particulars on rip-off prevention can be found at www.scamshield.gov.sg.
Featured picture credit score: Edited from Freepik