Forum: Scammers quick to capitalise on Budget announcements
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After Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced several goodies in his Budget speech on Feb 18, scammers were quick to put out fake Budget-related announcements online, hoping to snare victims.
Online scams have caused some victims to lose their life savings. Worse, scams seem to have continued to proliferate, with at least five articles on scams published in The Straits Times in the first few weeks of 2025 alone, reflecting the magnitude of the problem ( Victims lost at least $32.6m to scams since January, police urge vigilance,
Given this wanton scamming behaviour, it is time to beef up the relevant parts of the Penal Code to deter would-be scammers before more Singaporeans fall prey. Continued public education and other complementary approaches are needed to “stem that scam”.
Daniel Ng Peng Keat
