SINGAPORE: More than S$2.9 million in potential losses were prevented in June, in an anti-scam operation between the police and several cryptocurrency exchanges.
Over 130 victims were identified during the operation from June 1 to 30, the Singapore Police Force said on Sunday (July 5).
Its Anti-Scam Centre and Cyber Investigation Branch worked with cryptocurrency exchanges, including Coinbase, Coinhako, Gemini, Independent Reserve, OKX, StraitsX and Upbit, in their third such operation.
Officers identified victims across multiple scam types, including those involving government officials impersonation, investments and jobs, through advanced blockchain analysis.
These victims were contacted by the police via phone calls and in person.
The police then shared blockchain intelligence from the operation with foreign law enforcement counterparts, including the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybercrime Squad of the New South Wales Police Force.
“As scams continue to grow in sophistication and scale, the combination of the police’s investigative and technical capabilities, support from cryptocurrency exchanges and cooperation with foreign law enforcement agencies has been effective in detecting scam activities early and protecting members of the public from financial harm,” the police said.
To avoid falling for scams, the police advised the public to:
- Use security features such as the ScamShield application and two-factor authentication for personal accounts such as banks, social media and Singpass accounts.
- Set transaction limits for internet banking, including PayNow, to limit the amount of funds that can be lost in a scam.
- Check for potential signs of a scam by asking questions, fact-checking requests for personal information and money transfers, and verifying the legitimacy of online listings and reviews.
For more information on scams, go to www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the ScamShield Helpline on 1799.
To report scam cases, call 1800-255-0000 or go to www.police.gov.sg/i-witness.
All information will be kept strictly confidential, said the police. - The Straits Times/ANN
