More countries set up anti-scam centres; increased teamwork, speed vital to retrieve lost funds: SPF
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Scam cases in Singapore hit a record high in 2023 with 46,563 cases reported – up 46.8 per cent from the 31,728 cases in 2022.
PHOTO: ST FILE
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SINGAPORE – In an encouraging sign in the global fight against scams, more countries are setting up anti-scam centres to work together to tackle the scourge.
More needs to be done, however, for law enforcement agencies worldwide to collaborate efficiently on nabbing these criminals and helping victims recover funds, said the assistant director of the police’s Anti-Scam Command (ASC), Assistant Commissioner of Police Aileen Yap.
Speaking to the media on July 31, she urged every country to set up an anti-scam centre that would serve as a direct point of contact for countries to team up on scam-related matters.
AC Yap said: “Such outfits in each country can facilitate swift information-sharing, cross-border fund tracing and recovery. In many instances, by the time the appropriate agencies in a particular country got together to take action, most of the funds were gone.”
Scammers stole an estimated US$1.02 trillion (S$1.4 trillion) globally
This was higher than the US$55.3 billion lost for the whole of 2021 and the US$47.8 billion lost in 2020, according to a joint study by non-profit organisation Global Anti-Scam Alliance and data service provider ScamAdviser.
AC Yap said anti-scam centres allow efficient information-sharing among law enforcement agencies, and this is crucial in preventing victims’ money from reaching scam syndicates.
Several countries, including Malaysia, Australia and Canada, have dedicated units to fight scams.
These units serve as a direct point of contact for law enforcement agencies to alert one another when scam proceeds flow into a particular country.
The relevant authorities can then promptly freeze tainted bank accounts and recover stolen funds, said AC Yap.
She cited examples of how victims recovered losses when law enforcement agencies worked together.
In July, the Singapore Police Force (SPF), in collaboration with the Timor-Leste authorities and Interpol, made its largest recovery of over US$40 million in a case of business e-mail compromise scam.
An employee of a commodity firm in Singapore had transferred the sum to a scammer posing as a supplier. After a police report was made, the agencies worked together to recover the funds, and seven suspects were arrested.
Assistant director of the police’s Anti-Scam Command Aileen Yap urges countries to set up anti-scam centres.
PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
In May, Singapore’s ASC received a report about a technical support scam victim who had transferred $25,000 to a bank account in Malaysia.
ASC contacted Malaysia’s National Scam Response Centre, which helped recover the money. The Malaysian centre was set up in April 2023.
In another technical support scam in April, ASC detected two transactions totalling $420,000 made to bank accounts in Hong Kong. It alerted Hong Kong’s Anti-Deception Coordination Centre, which recovered $370,000.
Beyond fund recovery, AC Yap said having a scam centre in every country can help the authorities share information quickly on the latest scam trends, and prepare for such attacks.
She said: “A scam typology taking place in one country may soon evolve into another. We see this phenomenon in the malware-enabled scam, which hit Thailand first, followed by Singapore in 2023.
“Therefore, if countries can share information on the new methods employed by scammers and commit to working together, we stand a better chance at disrupting and dismantling their operations.”
Malware scams involving Android mobile devices robbed nearly 2,000 victims here of at least $34.1 million in 2023
They involve scammers deceiving victims into installing malicious apps, often when victims respond to online advertisements for services such as food purchases. Scammers then access the victims’ devices to perform fraudulent transactions.
AC Yap said the number of malware scams has fallen since local banks rolled out measures,
She encouraged other countries to establish baseline standards for industry stakeholders, such as banks, social media platforms and telcos, to get these players involved in the fight against scams.
In Singapore, negligent banks and telecommunication companies may be held responsible for scam victims’ losses if they breach their responsibilities under a proposed framework
These breaches include failure by banks to send outgoing transaction alerts to consumers and telcos not implementing a scam filter for SMSes.
AC Yap said SPF has been facilitating study visits and virtual sharing sessions with over 100 countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand, since 2019.
Singapore’s ASC, which was set up in June 2019, was inspired by Hong Kong’s equivalent that was set up in July 2017, said AC Yap.
In 2023, Hong Kong adopted Singapore’s concept of deploying bank staff to work in its anti-scam centre to help trace funds and freeze tainted bank accounts.
Since Singapore’s ASC was set up, it has recovered over $410 million in scam losses as at December 2023.
This figure is about 20 per cent of the over $2 billion lost to scams from 2019 to 2023.
Scam cases in Singapore hit a record high in 2023 with 46,563 cases
This year’s Global Anti-Scam Summit Asia will be held in Singapore from Oct 21 to 22. Policymakers, law enforcement agencies and cyber security agencies are expected to attend.
AC Yap said: “We hope to garner support from stakeholders locally and internationally in the fight against scams. If every country has an ASC, it will be a very strong arsenal against scammers.”
