At least 189 Carousell, Facebook users lost over $303,000 to phishing scams since January
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At least 189 people have since Jan 1 fallen prey to fraudsters posing as interested “buyers” on platforms such as Carousell and Facebook Marketplace.
PHOTO: ST FILE
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SINGAPORE – Users of online marketplace platforms have lost more than $303,000 to phishing scams involving fake buyers since Jan 1.
In a statement on Feb 12, the police said that at least 189 people have fallen prey to fraudsters posing as interested “buyers” on platforms such as Carousell and Facebook Marketplace.
After agreeing on the selling price of the listed items through in-app chat functions or separate messaging platforms such as WhatsApp, victims would receive an e-mail, purportedly from the online marketplace platform, confirming the order.
The e-mail would prompt victims to click on an embedded link in order to receive payment, the police said.
After clicking on the link, victims would be redirected to a spoofed bank website and asked to key in their personal information, such as banking credentials, card details and one-time-passwords.
In other cases, scammers would offer to arrange a courier service for the items.
Victims would then receive a QR code or a phishing link, purportedly from delivery companies such as Grab and Lalamove, to facilitate delivery.
Upon scanning the QR code or clicking on the phishing link, victims would be directed to a spoofed delivery company website or bank website, where they would enter their personal information to complete the transaction.
Victims would realise that they had been scammed only after discovering unauthorised transactions in their bank accounts or bank cards.
Scam cases reached an all-time high in the first half of 2024, with more than $385.6 million lost across 26,587 reported incidents.
The public is urged to adopt precautionary measures, such as enabling security features, checking for scam signs against official sources and reporting scams to the authorities.
For more information or to report such crimes, individuals can contact the police hotline on 1800-255-0000 or visit the ScamShield website.
