1,200 people, 50 companies have bank, telco and Singpass access restricted over scams: Shanmugam

About 1,200 people and 50 corporate entities have had their access to Singpass, bank accounts and telco services restricted due to their involvement in scams, Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam said on Monday (Jan 12).

In a parliamentary question, MP Jackson Lam asked how effective are the restrictions, which have been implemented from October last year in phases.

Shanmugam, who is also Coordinating Minister for National Security, said that the authorities have seen positive early results, but will need more time to assess.

"Persons under investigation for mule-related offences and assessed to be at risk of further facilitating scams, as well as those prosecuted for such offences, will be subject to restrictions until the case outcome is determined," he added.

Money mules who have been warned, fined or convicted will be subjected to restrictions for one year, or three years if they are repeat offenders.

Shanmugam said when a scam is reported, the police’s Anti-Scam Centre coordinates closely with banks to quickly trace where the monies have been transferred to, and freeze those bank accounts to prevent them from siphoning money out of Singapore.

They are able to freeze accounts within a day, and in some cases, hours.

The police also work with telecom companies to terminate scam-tainted phone lines and GovTech to investigate and stem the misuse of Singpass accounts for scams.

In 2025, until Nov 30, there were over 33,800 cases with more than $840.3 million lost. 

In 2024, there were more than 50,000 cases, involving more than a billion dollars. 

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chingshijie@asiaone.com