SINGAPORE - Some 112 e-commerce scams have been reported to the police from January to April this year, said the Singapore Police Force in an advisory on Friday (May 31).

Many reports involved hotel room bookings and attraction tickets, particularly Universal Studios Singapore (USS) tickets. Victims either did not receive the tickets after payment was made, or were given invalid tickets, said the police.

Members of the public are advised to be wary of online advertisements for hotel room bookings and theme park tickets that sound "too good to be true", and to read sellers' reviews before committing to the purchase.

The police warned that scammers may use a local bank account or provide a copy of an NRIC or driver's licence to make buyers believe that they are genuine sellers.

Members of the public should avoid making payments or deposits before receiving the item, and stay away from unauthorised sellers who may sell duplicate tickets that are invalid upon entry.

About 70 per cent of e-commerce scams in 2018 took place on online selling platform Carousell.

For more information on scams, the public can visit scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam hotline on 1800-722-6688.

Anyone with information on scams may call the police hotline on 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.