At least $249,000 lost in 1½ months to impersonation scams involving compromised WhatsApp accounts

SINGAPORE – If you get a WhatsApp message from someone saying they are your family member or friend, and need you to transfer money, be on your guard.

At least $249,000 has been lost in about 1½ months to scammers who would take over WhatsApp accounts and impersonate account owners to ask for loans or financial assistance, said the police in a statement on Oct 21.

There have been at least 128 such cases since September, they added. In this scam variant, victims would typically receive WhatsApp messages from scammers posing as their family members, friends, colleagues or acquaintances.

The scammers would ask for loans, or ask victims to transfer money on their behalf, saying they were experiencing difficulty making bank transfers, have reached their transfer limits, or need help to make payments on their behalf.

Victims have also reported receiving messages purportedly from their children, asking them to transfer payment for an artificial intelligence or exchange programme.

The police urge members of the public to be wary of any requests to transfer money, and to verify unusual requests for money directly with family members, friends, colleagues, or acquaintances.

“Do not transfer any money until you have confirmed the request is genuine,” the police added.

They also advocate securing WhatsApp accounts by enabling two-step verifications and removing unnecessary or unknown linked devices.

To block scam calls and filter suspicious messages, the police advise downloading the ScamShield app. For more information on scams, members of the public may also visit www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the 24-hour ScamShield Helpline on 1799.

Singapore has lost more than $4 billion to scams since 2019, with a total of $410.6 million lost to scam-related incidents in the first six months of 2026.

While scam-related losses in 2026 have dipped from the $500.2 million lost during the same period in 2025, the police warn that scams still remain the dominant crime type in Singapore.

Losses from social media impersonation scams recorded a significant increase of 71.3% from $2.2 million in the first half of 2025 to $3.9 million during the same period in 2026.

The number of social media impersonation cases reported also increased by 47.9% from 397 cases in the first half of 2025 to 587 cases during the same period in 2026.

In the first half of 2026, there were 391 reported cases of impersonation scams via compromised WhatsApp accounts, accounting for 66.6% of social media impersonation scam cases.