5 people arrested for alleged links to recent spate of banking-related malware scams
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The suspects were rounded up after a week-long islandwide anti-scam enforcement operation.
PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
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SINGAPORE – Four men and a woman, aged between 18 and 46, have been arrested for their suspected involvement in a recent spate of banking-related malware scam cases.
Malware-enabled scams cost victims a total of $295,000 in the first half of 2024,
The police, in a Sept 20 statement, said the suspects were rounded up after a week-long islandwide anti-scam enforcement operation involving the Commercial Affairs Department, Bedok Police Division and Clementi Police Division.
A 16-year-old male and a 36-year-old man are also assisting with investigations, they added.
Preliminary investigations revealed that three of the men, aged 18, 19 and 21, allegedly facilitated the scam cases by relinquishing their bank accounts and internet banking credentials or disclosing Singpass credentials for monetary gain.
A 32-year-old man and a 46-year-old woman are believed to have received criminal proceeds in their bank accounts.
The police added that since Aug 30, they have received several reports of banking-related malware scams
Upon clicking on the link of these advertisements, victims were directed to WhatsApp to communicate with the scammers posing as “sellers”.
Scammers would then engage victims in a video call and request screen sharing.
During the conversation, victims would be instructed to launch the Google Play Store app on their mobile device and deactivate “Google Play Protect”, a service that prevents the installation of harmful applications.
Victims would then be directed to download an Android Package Kit (APK) containing malware through malicious links, under the pretext of obtaining an order number or acknowledging the receipt of goods.
The malicious APK would then allow the scammer to take control of the victim’s phone and make unauthorised transactions.
In some of these cases, after the victims had discovered the transactions, scammers impersonating bank officers would call the victims and try to convince them not to lodge police reports. Instead, the “bank officers” claimed that they would help to lodge the report on the victims’ behalf.
Subsequently, scammers posing as officers from law enforcement agencies such as Interpol would call the victims and claim that they were involved in money laundering. These scammers have been known to attempt coercing victims into parting with more of their monies while posing as officers from a law enforcement agency.
Upon clicking on the link of advertisements on Facebook, victims were directed to WhatsApp to communicate with the scammers posing as “sellers”.
PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
Those found guilty of helping another benefit from criminal conduct can be jailed for up to three years, fined, or both.
Meanwhile, people who deceive banks into opening bank accounts can be imprisoned for up to three years, fined, or both.
Those who relinquish their bank account login details can be fined up to $5,000, jailed for up to two years, or both, while those who disclose their Singpass credentials can be jailed for a maximum of three years, fined, or both.
In August, the Sentencing Advisory Panel recommended that significant jail sentences
The police, in their Sept 20 statement, reminded members of the public of the dangers of downloading apps from third-party or dubious sites. They said scammers can also exploit legitimate applications like those with remote access or control functionalities.
“As a precautionary measure to protect the public, banks may block such applications,” the police said.
Members of the public would not be able to use banking applications when these applications are in use on their devices, they added.
As a precaution, the public should adopt these measures:
Install security features. The public can download antivirus applications like AVG Antivirus and Security, and ensure that these apps are updated to scan for the latest malware. They can use the Money Lock feature of their bank to “lock up” a portion of their money so that it cannot be transferred out digitally by anyone.
Ensure that a device’s operating system and applications are updated regularly to be protected by the latest security patches.
Disable “Install Unknown App” or “Unknown Sources” in a phone’s settings and do not grant permission to persistent pop-ups that request access to a device’s hardware or data.
Check with official sources like the
scam alert website
. Check the developer information on the app listing, as well as the number of downloads and user reviews, to ensure an app is reputable and legitimate.Report suspicious content or advertisements to Facebook. Initiate in-app blocking by reporting the number linked to the advertisements to WhatsApp. Report any fraudulent transactions to your bank immediately.
If a malicious app has been installed, victims can take the following steps:
Put the phone in “flight mode”. Check that Wi-Fi is switched off and do not switch it on.
Run an antivirus scan on the phone.
Check for unauthorised actions in bank accounts, Singpass, Central Provident Fund or other important accounts.
Report unauthorised transactions to the bank and relevant authorities and lodge a police report.
As a further precaution, victims could perform a “factory reset” for their phone and change important passwords.
Those with information about such crimes or are in doubt should contact the police on 1800-255-0000, or at police.gov.sg/i-witness
The public can visit www.scamalert.sg
