The Big Read in Short: Scams galore — why S’poreans keep falling for them

Each week, TODAY’s long-running Big Read series delves into the trends and issues that matter. This week, we look at the growing prevalence of scams in Singapore and why people remain susceptible, despite extensive media coverage and police public advisories. This is a shortened version of the full feature,​ which can be found here.

SINGAPORE — A Singtel staff impersonator struck at just the right time, when the elderly man’s usual defences were down.

The scammers accused him of being in trouble for money laundering and starting a pornography business, so he listened to their demands to download software that allowed remote access to his computer. They also tried to persuade him to part with hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The senior citizen, who declined to be named, lost only a few thousand dollars in the end. Fortunately, DBS Bank managed to block the larger of the two transactions before they were completed.

Still, it was a harsh lesson for someone who describes himself as “quite computer literate” and not usually susceptible to such ruses. “When you’re not mentally alert, anything can happen. I’ve rejected (such calls) before,” he said.

Another 60-year-old woman whom TODAY spoke to thinks she may have fallen victim to a scam even though it seemed legitimate when she first started investing.

After a year of pumping in large sums of cash, the civil servant lost US$140,000 (S$193,000) in 2017 within a few days ⁠—half of what was in an account which she set up for the investment scheme.

She still has US$116,000 in the account but its managers said she is not allowed to withdraw the sum as it includes bonuses. Nevertheless, she still hopes to get her money back, though she is too embarrassed to report the matter to the authorities.

Both the elderly man and the civil servant are among a growing number of Singaporeans who have fallen prey to the scourge of scams, with those involving impersonation, e-commerce, Internet love, credit-for-sex, and loans topping the list.

The numbers are staggering: For the top 10 types of scams from January to June, 3,591 cases were reported with a total loss of S$83.1 million. The largest sum cheated in a single case this year was S$4.3 million, via an investment ruse.

The continuing surge in scams has contributed to the growing crime rate here this year despite a slowdown in almost all other crimes — and it is not just the Republic which is facing this problem.

For example, China, Australia and the United States are all seeing an increase in scam cases recently. In Hong Kong, authorities have flagged a rise in online and phone scams in the city since last year.

Many victims were young people, and 65 per cent of phone scam cases involved conmen posing as “mainland officials”, according to a report in the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

SCMP attributed this to the fact that most youths — as digital natives who prefer online chats to voice calls — would not think of calling the other party to check.

ARE S’POREANS ‘TOO TRUSTING AND OBEDIENT’?

In recent years, the authorities here have stepped up efforts to stem the scamming tide, from regular public warnings about the latest tricks by fraudsters to awareness campaigns and the establishment of a dedicated Anti-Scam Centre by the police.

Yet, people from various walks of life continue to be cheated. Indeed, as the cases here and elsewhere have shown, there is no such thing as anyone being “too smart” to fall for a scam.

In fact, some experts believe scammers are exploiting Singaporeans’ general trust in authority and the fact that they live in a low-crime environment.

They noted that Singaporeans seem to be especially vulnerable to impersonation scams that involve officials.

For example, victims here lost S$7.1 million to China official impersonation scams in the first half of this year — up from a S$6 million loss in the same period last year.

“Singapore is a country with low crime, and often we let our guard down and we do not usually have a high level of suspicion. We are also more trusting of authority figures and do not question their identity,” said psychiatrist Dr Lim Boon Leng from Dr BL Lim Centre for Psychological Wellness.

Dr Tan Ern Ser, a sociologist from the National University of Singapore, said he was “reluctant to argue that vulnerability to scam amounts to a Singaporean trait”, given that the number of victims — albeit rising — remains a small proportion of the population.

“But I’d guess the people most at risk of being scammed in the case of impersonation are likely to be quite trusting of others, and quite timid and fearful when encountering someone sounding officious,” he said.

Dr Emily Ortega, who heads the psychology programme at the School of Humanities & Behavioural Sciences at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, reiterated that anyone can fall for a scam.

“There is no particular personality type, age group, or demographic that is spared. Scammers use persuasive techniques to influence and some even impersonate or clone emails as well, hoping to trick people to use their gut feelings in their decision making,” she added.

Dr Lim also noted that those who think they are intelligent and unlikely to be scammed are, in reality, more at risk of being defrauded as they are “less guarded and less likely to cross-check their decisions with others”.

Scammers also exploit vulnerabilities such as making rash decisions under time pressure, or even greed or lust.

While the authorities constantly give tips on how to avoid being scammed, Dr Tan said that public education can reduce ignorance and carelessness among the general population.

“Perhaps, a simple message that any request for money, personal information, or offers by unknown persons or sources, should be rejected and reported,” he added.

ANTI-SCAM HOTLINES 

• For scam-related advice, call the anti-scam hotline on 1800 722 6688 or go to www.scamalert.sg.

• Anyone wishing to provide information on scams should call the police hotline on 1800 255 0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.