At least 360 victims lost $43k since May to freecycling scams advertising second-hand items

SINGAPORE – Some 360 people have lost at least $43,000 since May to freecycling scams where victims were lured by giveaways or sale of second-hand items posted on online platforms such as Facebook, Telegram and WhatsApp, said the police in a statement on Monday.

The items ranged from bicycles to large appliances such as washing machines or refrigerators.

After victims contacted the scammers via the messaging function of the respective apps, scammers would request payment for the second-hand items, and for the giveaways, a delivery or reservation fee.

Payments were usually made via bank transfers or through e-wallets such as Singtel Dash or GooglePay. 

Victims realised that they had been scammed when they did not receive the items after payment.

According to the mid-year scam statistics for 2023 released last Wednesday, the number of scam victims in Singapore rose in the first half of 2023. There were 22,339 cases logged, a 64.5 per cent increase from the 13,576 cases during the same period in 2022. 

But the total amount that victims lost in the first half of 2023 dropped slightly to $334.5 million, from $342.1 million during the same period in 2022. 

For more information on scams, the public can visit

www.scamalert.sg

, or call the Anti-Scam Helpline on 1800-722-6688.