SP Services files police report on scam e-mail

Energy company SP Services has filed a police report about scam e-mail claiming to give refunds on utilities bills.

In an advisory yesterday, SP Services said: "Recipients of such e-mails are advised not to respond to the e-mail, click on the hyperlink or provide their personal information.

"SP Services would like to assure its customers that no unauthorised access has been made into its systems, and utility accounts and personal information that reside in SP Services' system have not been compromised."

SP Services, a member of Singapore Power Group, said it was first alerted to the e-mail titled SP Services Offer in May, and had received 15 inquiries about them. But the company behind the e-mail, Rivalife, told Channel NewsAsia that the refunds are part of a cashback promotion it offers its members.

It said that it would contact SP Services "to understand their point of view and in the meantime, we have stopped advertising their brand to our customers".

In January, SP services had warned members of the public about unauthorised e-mail being sent on its behalf. The e-mail asked recipients to click on an attached link to view their electricity bill. Investigations showed that these e-mail were sent randomly and were also sent to individuals who did not have utilities accounts with SP Services.

A police report was lodged then. In March, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore had also sounded the alarm over a scam e-mail impersonating the statutory board.

The same month, the police also warned the public to be wary of e-mail from sg_police@outlook.com, claiming recipients had won a $200,000 package from an airline company. Recipients were asked to contact staff at a local bank and to provide personal details before their winnings could be transferred to them. The e-mail were signed off with the name of a senior police officer.

This article was published on Sept 12 in The New Paper.

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