SINGAPORE: At least S$74,000 has been lost to phishing scams involving the impersonation of Land Transport Authority (LTA) officials in three weeks, said the police.
There have been at least 13 such cases since June 1, the police said in a June 22 statement advising the public to stay vigilant against this ruse.
In these cases, victims would receive text messages from scammers claiming to be from LTA. They would be urged to settle outstanding Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) fees through a provided link to avoid additional charges.
The link will direct victims to a phishing website resembling the official LTA or OneMotoring page, where they will be prompted to fill in their vehicle number and personal information, including banking and card details.
The ruse is up when victims discover unauthorised transactions charged to their bank accounts.
The police advise the public to be wary of such phishing links, as messages from LTA on unpaid fees or road tax bills do not contain payment links to the OneMotoring website or payment portals.
Notifications from LTA sent to vehicle owners through text will have a “gov.sg” sender identification, while e-letters deposited into a vehicle owner’s OneMotoring account is accessible only through Singpass login.
Those who opted for hard-copy notification will receive letters sent to the vehicle owner’s registered address.
The police advise the public against sharing personal information, bank or card details, and one-time passwords with anyone. The public should not click on suspicious links provided by unfamiliar or unverified individuals, say the police.
Members of the public are also advised to check the actual URL hyperlinked before clicking on it. On a computer, this can be done by hovering the mouse cursor over hyperlinked text. On a mobile device, a long press on the hyperlink will display a window showing the actual URL.
To learn more about scams, people can visit www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the ScamShield hotline on 1799. - The Straits Times/ANN
