GEIS-新闻详情

Singapore pledges support for more global cooperation in helping fraud victims recover funds

2024-03-13 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-新加坡原网页

SINGAPORE – Singapore is among 11 countries that endorsed a statement released at the inaugural Global Fraud Summit pledging stronger collaboration between countries in the fight against fraud.

This is the first time a ministerial-level summit was convened for fraud, and it took place in London on March 11 and 12.

Second Minister for Home Affairs Josephine Teo represented Singapore at the event.

Mrs Teo, who is also Minister for Communications and Information, said the summit shows there are considerable challenges in combating fraud – which is often a transnational crime – and highlights the need for countries to come together.

The statement, which was endorsed by countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada and Australia, includes a commitment by the nations to find new ways to improve asset recovery, to strengthen international coordination in cracking down on criminal networks, and to facilitate information sharing across borders.

Speaking to the Singapore media from London via a Zoom call on March 13, Mrs Teo said officials exchanged ideas with one another, and Singapore was recognised for its anti-fraud efforts.

“Many countries were impressed that banks sat next to the police in our Anti-Scam Command and worked together in real time to freeze bank accounts and recover monies.

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“They hope to have a similar capability and set-up.”

She said other countries were also interested in Singapore’s SMS Sender ID Registry, adding that the initiative has been critical in bringing down phishing scam cases in Singapore by labelling potential scam messages as “likely scam”.

On cross-border collaboration to pursue fraudsters and recover funds, Mrs Teo said Interpol has established a directory with points of contact for law enforcement agencies to liaise with their foreign counterparts.

She added that international benchmarks, such as on response time and the kind of information countries can provide one another, help put everyone on the same page.

In her speech at the summit, the minister said Singapore is concerned about three types of fraud-related activities, namely scams, ransomware and money laundering.

She said that in 2023, scam losses in Singapore did not spike further for the first time in five years. Likewise, she noted, there was a reprieve in ransomware cases last year.

“While losses due to scams and ransomware are still considerable, the upward trends have hopefully been arrested and give us room to push back further,” she added.

Scam victims in Singapore lost $651.8 million in 2023, a slight dip from the $660.7 million lost to scammers in 2022.

However, the number of scam cases was a record high, jumping 46.8 per cent from 31,728 cases in 2022 to 46,563 cases in 2023.