The Police would like to alert members of the public to a variant of Lucky Draw scam where victims are deceived into providing their banking credentials or making payments to cash out prizes won from lucky draws. Between January and March 2024, at least 191 victims fell prey with total losses amounting to at least $521,000.
In this scam variant, scammers would approach members of the public via social media platforms, most commonly through Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram and Amazon. Scammers approached victims under the pretext of a lucky draw by means of advertisements or through direct messages. Victims were deceived to make payments to either be guaranteed a prize or for more chances to win high value prizes (such as an iPhone15, branded wallets etc).
In some cases, scammers would videocall victims via WhatsApp and request for screensharing under the pretext of verifying their payments. Through the screensharing, scammers would be able to observe the victims logging into their bank accounts, including sighting the banking credentials they keyed in. Victims would realise that they have been scammed when they did not receive their lucky draw prizes.
Members of the public are strongly advised to be cautious when screensharing your WhatsApp calls and to adopt the following precautionary measures.:
- ADD – Add the ScamShield App to protect yourself from scam calls and SMSes. Set security features (e.g. set up Money Lock; set up transaction limits for internet banking transactions, enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), Multifactor Authentication for banks). Victims who allowed scammers to verify their I-banking payments via WhatsApp screen sharing function are advised to change their I-banking credentials and passwords to prevent it from being abused by the scammers.
- CHECK – Check for scam signs with official sources (e.g. ScamShield WhatsApp bot @ https://go.gov.sg/scamshield-bot, call the Anti-Scam Helpline on 1800-722-6688, or visit www.scamalert.sg).
- TELL – Tell the authorities, family, and friends about scams. Report the scam to Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp. Report any unauthorised transactions to the banks
If you have any information relating to such crimes or if you are in doubt, please call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. All information will be kept strictly confidential. If you require urgent Police assistance, please dial ‘999’.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam Helpline at 1800-722-6688. Fighting scams is a community effort. Together, we can ACT Against Scams to safeguard our community!
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
15 April 2024 @ 5:40 PM