According to the Singapore Police Force, online scammers cheated Singaporeans of more than $83.1 million from January to June. The number of cases and the amounts scammed have been rising steadily over the years.

I used to think that these scams happened only to other people, until my own family member fell victim to an Internet love scam.

Anyone can be hit by a scam, and stories, statistics and research have proven that the younger generation is just as likely as the older generation to be duped by ruthless online scammers.

Scammers hit us not only financially, but also affect us psychologically, emotionally and perhaps even spiritually. More importantly, the nation also takes an economic hit, and a united stand against these scammers must be taken.

I hope the Government can step up its education efforts to include money remittance agents, and impose tough measures on scammers when they are caught.

Lawrence Sim