At least $17.5m lost to tech support scams since January 2024: Police, CSA

At least 198 reports have been made by victims who have fallen prey to tech support scams since the start of 2024, with a total loss amounting to at least $17.5 million.

The police and Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) said in a joint statement on Tuesday (Jan 21) that victims of such scams typically receive pop-up alerts informing them that their computer had been compromised, with a phone number to call for technical support. 

Phone numbers provided by the scammers often start with the "+65" prefix or the number 6, which give victims the impression that they are calling a legitimate helpdesk for technical support. 

Scammers would proceed to impersonate support personnel from reputable software providers such as Microsoft or Apple.

They would then instruct victims to download remote access applications before requesting them to log into their bank accounts. 

Once logged in, scammers would be able to transfer the victim's money out to other bank accounts, said the police and CSA.

In some cases, scammers would ask victims to approve the bank transaction with their digital token when bank authentication is required. 

The authorities reminded the public to remain vigilant when verifying the authenticity of such messages, adding that reputable software providers such as Microsoft do not include phone numbers in error messages.

Apple has also advised users to ignore such messages, or close such windows and tabs.

If an individual suspects they have fallen prey to such scams, they are advised to turn off their computer and report the incident to their respective bank to halt all transactions, said the authorities.

They should then remove any software downloaded at the scammers' instructions and perform a full anti-virus scan on their devices. 

Victims should also change their passwords banking credentials, and report the incident to the police and CSA's SingCERT. 

Members of the public can report such scams at the police hotline on 1800-255-0000, or online at www.police.gov.sg/i witness. 

More information on scam prevention is available at www.scamshield.gov.sg or through the police's anti-scam helpline at 1799. 

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xingying.koh@asiaone.com