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Top scams
Here are the top five scams, based on the approximate amounts cheated from victims, between January and May this year:
1 Internet love scams - $8.9 million
Perpetrators, who usually claim to be foreigners, target victims looking for love or friendship online.
2 China officials impersonation scams - $4.9 million
Victims are told their identities were used to send parcels containing items such as fake passports or weapons.
They are referred to another caller claiming to be an official from China and asked to provide personal details or to remit money to the authorities to avoid further investigation.
3 Credit-for-sex scams - $646,900
Scammers convince victims to buy cards or online shopping credits in exchange for sexual or escort services.
4 Online purchase scams - $623,500
Scammers post online advertisements for tablets, smartphones or other gadgets at attractive prices. Victims are asked to pay in advance, but the items are not delivered.
5 Lottery scams- $396,200
In lottery scams such as Scratch and Win schemes, victims, who might be shopping in Johor Baru, scratch cards and "win" expensive prizes, for which they are asked to pay administration charges or taxes before collection.
•Source: Singapore Police Force
Protect yourself
•Do not add strangers to your social media networks. If someone claiming to be a friend of a Facebook friend contacts you, check with your Facebook friend first regarding the would-be friend's identity.
•Do not interact with strangers online, especially when they ask for financial assistance or seek companionship.
•If someone you know is using multiple accounts to add you as a friend, verify this with him directly.
•Do not post or provide sensitive information such as personal particulars, bank details as well as photos of credit cards, identity cards, passports, boarding passes or club membership cards.
•Do not click on suspicious or overly enticing links to news items (for example, news that flight MH370, which disappeared in 2014, has been found safe) or too-good-to-be-true promotional offers in apps and social media. Clicking on them could compromise your social media systems if the links contain malware.
•In a telephone call or Internet query posed to you, ask probing questions rather than passively answering queries. Ask who they are, where they are from, and say you want to verify their agency. Push back against their line of questioning and scammers are more likely to cease.
•End the call if you suspect it is a scam and make a police report. You may end up unwittingly revealing more information about yourself if you remain on the line. Speed is crucial: The police can act once the report is filed.
•Sources: Mr Fadli Sidek, a consultant at global risk consultancy Control Risks; and Mr Gerald Singham, vice-chairman at the National Crime Prevention Council.