In March 2020, the Police received at least 16 reports of social media impersonation scams where victims were tricked into disclosing their mobile number and Grab One-Time Password (OTP) to scammers.

In these cases, scammers would impersonate as the victims’ friends or followers on Facebook and Instagram. They would then ask the victims for their personal details such as mobile number, bank account details, and Grab One-Time Password (OTP) on the pretext of helping them to sign up for fake contests or promotions allegedly by Lazada and Shopee. With the victim’s mobile number and Grab OTP, the scammers were then able to make fraudulent transactions on the UniPin store, an online platform which allows users to top up game credits that can be used on a variety of online games, using the victims’ GrabPay accounts. The total amount cheated amounted to at least S$8,000.

Prevention measures

1. Don’t panic – Beware of unusual requests from strangers or even your social media contacts 



2. Don’t believe – Always verify the authenticity of the request by contacting your friend, but do not do so through the social media platform as the account might have been taken over by scammers 

3. Don’t give – Never give out your personal or bank account details, and One-Time Password (OTP) to anyone, including family and friends.

Join the ‘Let’s Fight Scams’ campaign at www.scamalert.sg/fight by signing up as an advocate to receive up-to-date messages and share them with your family and friends.

Together, we can help stop scams and prevent our loved ones from becoming the next victim of scam!