SINGAPORE - Police warned the public on Friday (Aug 23) of a new variant of the lucky draw scam.

A victim received a call from an unknown overseas number informing her that she had won a lucky draw. She was asked to contact a local number via WhatsApp and told that she had won the "Singapore phone number WhatsApp lucky draw".

The victim was shown a photo of a bank cheque with her name on it and asked to provide her bank account number.

When the victim refused to claim her "winnings", she was threatened with being referred to the police and was sent a photo of uniformed police officers.

Afraid of getting into trouble with the authorities, the victim followed the instructions of the scammer and transferred money via Singtel Dash to pay for various "fees and charges". The victim was also told to contact a person who claimed to be an officer from the Singapore Police Force.

Police advise the public not to panic when receiving such calls. No government agency will request for any transfer of money or personal details over the phone.

The public should also be wary about such calls, especially if they did not participate in any lucky draw, and should not follow any instructions given.

Those who wish to provide information on such scams may call the police on 1800-255-0000, or send the information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness

For scam-related advice, they can call the anti-scam helpline on 1800-722-6688 or visit www.scamalert.sg