Police sound alarm on fraudulent Telegram messages promoting GST Voucher scheme

Police have issued an advisory on the resurgence of a scam campaign which utilises the GST Voucher (GSTV) scheme to take over Telegram accounts.

In a statement on Thursday (July 16), the police said victims received Telegram messages containing infographics and a fake link, which encouraged them to check their eligibility for the upcoming GSTV disbursements in August.

Upon clicking the links, victims would be asked to disclose personal information such as mobile numbers, names and NRIC numbers.

They may also be prompted to provide Telegram verification codes which would allow scammers to take over their accounts.

Using the victims' Telegram accounts, the scammers would disseminate phishing links to the victims' contacts or add them into chat groups promoting fraudulent investment schemes.

Members of the public are reminded that they will never be asked to disclose personal credentials or bank log-in details to claim their GST Vouchers.

The SMS notification from "gov.sg" will only inform citizens of their benefits, and eligible Singaporeans who have previously signed up for the GSTV scheme will automatically receive the payments.

The Ministry of Finance does not have a broadcast channel on Telegram and will not contact members of the public through Telegram, the police added.

The public is also advised to safeguard against scams by using the ACT (Add, Check, Tell) framework.

If in doubt, call the ScamShield helpline at 1799.

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lim.kewei@asiaone.com