The culprits would pose as interested buyers and contact the victims. They would send fictitious emails in the name of PayPal or reputable banks to deceive the victims into believing that they had made payments. The culprits would request for the items to be shipped overseas and the victims were told to show proof of shipment before they would receive payment. In some of the cases, the victims were duped into making fictitious administrative payments such as for the ‘activation of PayPal accounts’ in order for them to receive payment. No payments were eventually received by the victims.
Members of public are advised to adopt the following preventive measures:
- Always log on to your Paypal account to verify that payment has indeed been made before sending the item. Do not trust the email, even if the address from which it originated appears to be legitimate.
- Never download attachments or software programs attached in such emails. Clicking on these could harm your computer and leave it susceptible to being hacked.
- Do not give out your personal information, credit/debit card details, bank account details, or email account details.
- Bear in mind that if Paypal really needs your information, it would send you a request to login safely to your account before you provide that information.
If you wish to provide any information, please call the Police hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. If you require urgent Police assistance, please dial ‘999’.
To seek scam-related advice, you may call the anti-scam helpline at 1800-722-6688 or go to www.scamalert.sg. Help spread the word and share this advisory with your family and friends to prevent them from being the next victim of scam.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
13 June 2017 @ 8:00 AM