Singtel warns of scammers who impersonate telco's staff to 'troubleshoot' Internet issues

The scammers, who claimed to be Singtel technicians or customer care officers, would offer to troubleshoot customers' Internet connections. They were known to ask for personal details such as Wi-Fi passwords and NRIC numbers. PHOTO: ST FILE

SINGAPORE - If you receive a call from a person who claims to be a Singtel employee asking for personal details such as Wi-Fi passwords and router numbers, it is likely a scam.

Telco Singtel warned customers on Wednesday (Aug 28) of this scam on Facebook.

The scammers, who claimed to be Singtel technicians or customer care officers, would offer to troubleshoot customers' Internet connections.

Singtel said that the callers are known to ask for personal details, such as NRIC numbers, Wi-Fi passwords and router numbers.

The telco assured the public its representatives would not ask for Wi-Fi passwords and router numbers during troubleshooting calls.

Singtel also advised consumers to hang up on unsolicited calls that they suspect could be a scam.

Customers should also not share personal details, including passwords, with unknown callers or click on random links from unknown numbers.

In May, the police alerted the public to a resurgence of lucky draw scams which had cheated 13 victims of $30,000.

Scammers would typically impersonate staff from local telcos Singtel or StarHub and use the messaging app Viber to contact victims.

These victims were then told that they had won some money in a lucky draw and were asked to provide their personal information, credit or debit card details, or bank account details, before they could receive their winnings.

From January to June 2018, 77 cases of fraudulent subscription of mobile lines were recorded with the police, with the amount cheated totalling more than $83,000.

Such cases involve people who were cheated into signing up for handsets and mobile lines for others. This was usually done for a commission.

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