Swift Intervention By Anti-Scam Centre And Standard Chartered Prevented Scam Victim From Losing S$500,000 In A Government Official Impersonation Scam Case

In August 2024, the Anti-Scam Centre (ASC) worked with Standard Chartered to foil a government official impersonation scam case, preventing losses of S$500,000. The bank detected the suspicious transactions and worked quickly with the ASC to intercept the funds and engage the victim, successfully convincing the victim of the deceptive scheme that she had fallen prey to.

The quick detection and vigilance of the bank staff played a key role in securing and recovering funds from the scam arrangement.

In this case, a 75-year-old victim received a call from a scammer who claimed to be a "staff" from Standard Chartered. The victim was informed that there were unauthorised transactions made on her Standard Chartered credit card, and was then referred to an "officer" from the Monetary Authority of Singapore to seek assistance. After speaking to the "officer" over the phone, the victim was told that her credit card had been compromised and the magnetic strip on her credit card could only be fixed if payment was made.

The "officer" asked the victim to sell off her investment funds and to transfer more than S$213,000 to various accounts held with other banks between 26 and 29 July 2024, which the victim acted on. She was then told by the "officer" to sell off her investments worth S$500,000 so that the details on the magnetic strip could be changed. This attempted transaction was detected by a Standard Chartered Relationship Manager, who noticed the victim's unusual banking behaviour and outgoing transfers to various bank accounts. Suspecting that she might be a victim of scam, he promptly escalated the case to the Standard Chartered anti-fraud team, who placed account restrictions and reached out to ASC for intervention.

The ASC immediately worked with the Standard Chartered team to alert the victim. After pointing out the red flags to the victim, she was convinced that she had fallen prey to a government official impersonation scam. The transaction was successfully stopped in time and a loss of S$500,000 was prevented.

Members of the public are encouraged to adopt the following crime prevention measures:

1. ADD - Add security features (e.g. enable International Call Blocking options on mobile devices, enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) or Multifactor Authentication for online accounts, Money Lock your bank accounts to further secure a portion of your savings). Do not send money to anyone you do not know or have not met in person before.
   
   
2. CHECK - Check for scam signs with official sources (e.g. call the Anti-Scam Helpline on 1800-722-6688 or visit www.scamalert.sg), or with someone you trust. Never disclose your personal information (including SingPass and CPF-related information), internet banking and social media account details, and One-Time Passwords (OTP) to anyone. Always monitor the transaction alerts sent by your bank.
   
   
3. TELL - Tell the authorities as well as your family and friends if or when you encounter scams. Report and block any suspected scam accounts and chat groups. If you suspect that you have fallen victim to a scam, call your bank immediately to report and block any fraudulent transactions as well as make a police report.

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/i-witness. 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!