More than $230,000 lost to PDPC officer impersonation scam; at least 4 cases reported
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Victims were told their mobile numbers had been used for criminal activities in Malaysia.
ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
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SINGAPORE - At least $231,000 has been lost to fraudsters impersonating officers from the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) since January, with at least four cases reported.
A joint statement by PDPC and Singapore Police Force (SPF) on Feb 17 said that victims would first receive phone calls from scammers, who would tell them their mobile numbers have been used for criminal activities in Malaysia.
The victims would then be told to report to the PDPC office to assist with investigations.
However, when they arrived, the scammers were nowhere to be found, prompting the victims to contact them by phone.
The scammers would then come up with an excuse and persuade them to transfer money to specified bank accounts under the guise of assisting with investigations.
In some cases, the calls would be transferred to a second scammer who would claim to be a representative of a Malaysian law enforcement agency.
They would convince the victims that they were the real deal by getting the victims to verify their “staff ID card” on a fake Malaysian law enforcement agency website.
Victims would then be directed to transfer money to specified bank accounts, or in some cases, disclose their personal information, including banking credentials and Singpass password, giving the scammers access to their bank accounts.
The ruse would be discovered only after the scammers become uncontactable, or when victims contacted the PDPC through official channels.
“Foreign police forces do not have powers to conduct investigation in Singapore or direct anyone in Singapore to assist in their investigations,” PDPC and SPF said in their statement.
They added that government officials would not – over the phone or through text message – ask people to transfer money, provide personal information, click on links to bank websites, or ask to install apps or software from third-party websites.
To verify the identity of a person who claims to be contacting you from PDPC, you may reach out to the commission on 6377-3131 or info@pdpc.gov.sg
