Skip to main content

New! You can personalise your feed. Try it now

Advertisement

Advertisement

OCBC's goodwill payouts to scammed victims were one-off gesture, do not set 'general precedent' for future cases: MAS

SINGAPORE — OCBC’s recent goodwill payouts to fully cover scam victims' losses were a "one-off gesture by the bank in the circumstances" and do not set a general precedent for future cases, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on Friday (Feb 4).

MAS said that financial institutions should bear an "appropriate proportion of losses" arising from scams, but also take care to ensure that compensation paid to customers does not weaken their incentive to be vigilant.

MAS said that financial institutions should bear an "appropriate proportion of losses" arising from scams, but also take care to ensure that compensation paid to customers does not weaken their incentive to be vigilant.

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp

SINGAPORE — OCBC’s recent goodwill payouts to fully cover scam victims' losses were a "one-off gesture by the bank in the circumstances" and do not set a general precedent for future cases, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on Friday (Feb 4).

Hundreds of OCBC bank customers fell prey to online phishing scams last month, with the bank saying all affected customers will get "full goodwill payouts".

The payouts included the bank’s consideration of how it had not met its own expectations of customer service and response, MAS said.

Banks in Singapore have "substantially implemented" more measures announced last month to bolster the security of digital banking, it added.

Following the spate of SMS phishing scams targeting bank customers, several immediate steps were put in place to strengthen controls.

These include the removal of clickable links in SMS phone messages or emails sent to customers, setting a default threshold of S$100 or lower for funds transfer transaction notifications and having a delay of at least 12 hours before the activation of a new soft token on a mobile device.

The central bank is working with the industry to evaluate longer-term measures to be rolled out in the coming months. It is also developing a framework for the equitable sharing of losses arising from scams.

SHARING LOSSES

The Payments Council, chaired by MAS, has been working since July last year on a framework that aims to provide clarity on how losses arising from scams are to be shared among consumers and financial institutions.

The council was set up in 2017 to drive the adoption of e-payments and foster collaboration in the industry.

"Under the framework, all parties have responsibilities to be vigilant and to take precautions against scams," MAS said.

The banking regulator also said that financial institutions have the responsibility to protect their customers, such as through "robust controls" to safeguard customer accounts and "effective measures to detect and respond to suspicious transactions".

On their end, customers also have the responsibility to take necessary precautions, by not giving away their personal or banking credentials to anyone, not clicking on links in SMS messages or emails that claim to be sent by a bank, and transacting only through the bank’s official website or mobile application.

"The proportion of losses each party bears will depend on whether and how the party has fallen short of its responsibilities," MAS said.

It added that financial institutions should bear an "appropriate proportion of losses" arising from scams, but also take care to ensure that compensation paid to customers does not weaken their incentive to be vigilant.

The authority plans to publish the framework for public consultation within the next three months.

"Other than the sharing of losses, the consultation will also cover the responsibilities of other key parties in the ecosystem," MAS said. CNA

For more stories like this, visit cna.asia.

Related topics

scams banks Monetary Authority of Singapore

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.