SINGAPORE — A month-long joint operation by the police's Anti-Scam Centre (ACS) and DBS Bank has prevented more than 3,900 potential victims losing over S$21 million, the police said on Thursday (July 13).

By using automation technology, the operation from June 12 to July 11, was able to significantly reduce the time taken to detect victims, the police said in a statement.

The ASC and DBS Bank sent more than 4,600 short messaging service, or SMSes, to the victims, disrupting more than 1,400 active scam cases.

The police said they have transformed joint anti-scam operations by adopting technology to identify job, investment and other scam victims and alerting them promptly to prevent further financial losses.

“Through the automation of processes, DBS Bank and ASC officers were able to significantly reduce the turnaround time in detecting these victims, with minimal human intervention," the police said.

“This proactive victim-centric approach also mitigated over S$21 million of financial losses which would be lost to scams if the victims had remained entrenched in the deceptive schemes,” they added.

LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY

Robotic process automation and other technologies were used by ASC and DBS to automate information sharing, information processing and the mass distribution of SMS alerts.

This significantly improved outreach to a larger number of victims within a short period of time, said the police.

“Many of these victims only realised that they had fallen prey to scams after receiving SMS alerts from the police, advising them to immediately cease further monetary transfers.”

JOB SCAMS

In job scams, victims will receive job offers through unsolicited WhatsApp or Telegram messages, urging them to participate in simple surveys or perform tasks such as “boosting ratings” of product listings for reputable merchants.

The victims would be enticed by the rewards offered for these simple tasks, such as answering survey questions, and are directed to create accounts on fraudulent websites to earn additional commissions.

Once the victims received their initial payment and commission, they would be directed to complete further “product boosting tasks” by making payments to bank accounts provided by the scammers.

INVESTMENT SCAMS

For investment scams, victims are usually approached on social media platforms, where they are introduced to supposed investment opportunities.

The scammers would frequently pose as financial advisors, brokers, or investment experts, enticing victims with the promise of lucrative profits.

The victims, lured by the prospect of easy money, are instructed to transfer money to specific bank accounts.

Initially, victims may receive small profits, leading them to believe the scheme is legitimate. They are later tricked into transferring larger sums of money to bank accounts controlled by the scammers.

Victims would realise they had been deceived only after they are asked to pay excessive withdrawal fees to encash their profits from fake investment platforms introduced by the scammers.

The police advised members of public to:

• Add security features such as a two-factor authentication for their personal bank accounts
• Check for potential scam signs by asking questions, fact-checking requests for personal information and money transfers, and verifying the legitimacy of online listings and reviews
• Tell the authorities and others about scam encounters by reporting such matters to the bank or by filing a police report. Warn others about ongoing scams and preventive steps they can take

Members of the public may visit www.scamalert.sg or call the anti-scam helpline at 1800-722-6688 for more information on scams.

Anyone with information about such scams may contact the police at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online to www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.