SPF and StarHub flip the script, get hackers to teach you how to not fall for scams

Starhub and the Singapore Police Force (SPF) have launched a public education campaign to promote vigilance against cyber threats. 

The campaign comprises a series of scam masterclasses, each playing out a common ruse that has snared many unsuspecting victims. 

The scam masterclasses are designed to engage viewers of all backgrounds and demonstrate that while anyone is vulnerable, recognising tell-tale signs of a scam is half the battle won, said StarHub in a statement seen by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE.

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As part of the scam masterclasses, viewers will be armed with essential knowledge and practical tools to outsmart scammers, ensuring a more secure digital landscape for everyone. 

“StarHub is deeply invested in the security and wellbeing of our community,” said Hoo Chuan-Wei, chief information security officer at StarHub.

“Our commitment goes beyond merely safeguarding data, it’s about fortifying the digital landscape to protect every individual. This cybersecurity campaign reflects our dedication to empowering Singaporeans with critical awareness and insights to effectively combat scams and cyber threats. Through this campaign, we hope to play our part in cultivating a more vigilant and resilient digital community," added Hoo. 

In tandem, the masterclass content will reflect how cyber threats continue to evolve. This includes the use of voice-changer AI. Featuring an ethical hacker, the masterclass content will reveal common methods used in impersonation, job and authority scams.

The first episode, titled "Wolf in Granny's clothing" reveals how a friendly GIF from an unknown number can be used to impersonate and scam. 

In the episode, the hacker shared that he loves using GIFs that people love such as food, babies and cats. When a victim clicks on the GIF, the hacker gets access to her front camera and her chats.

The scammer clicks into the victim's chat with her grandmother to learn her writing patterns and tone. The scammer then proceeds to impersonate the victim and texts her grandmother saying that her car just broke down. The scammer then asks her grandmother to transfer SG$3,000 to an unknown number. 

The transaction was thankfully cancelled with the hacker revealing that it was "just a drill". Through the masterclass, the viewer would have learnt not to click on GIFs sent from random numbers, and to verify identities before sending money. 

“All of us must be prepared that scams and cybercrimes will continue to evolve, and that we may encounter them anytime. We must not let our guard down and always remain vigilant in our fight against them. One simple way is to always stop and check if it’s a scam whenever in doubt. The SPF will continue to work closely with our partners and stakeholders to educate the public on the various types of scams and cybercrimes to safeguard our community” said senior sssistant commissioner of Police Devrajan Bala, director of the scam public education office (SPEO) in the Singapore Police Force.

The masterclasses will be rolled out across multiple platforms, including Starhub's official website, retail stores and the YouTube, Instagram and Facebook channels of both StarHub and SPF. The videos will also be aired on TV channels. 

The campaign comes as scammers become more sophisticated, with cases increasing by 46.8% from 31,728 in 2022 to 46,563 in Singapore, according to the Singapore Police Force scams and cybercrime brief for 2023. 

In fact, job scams recorded the highest number of cases reported at 9,914 while eCommerce scams took second place with 9,783 cases reported. Each represent about 21% of the total number of scams reported.

Other popular scam types include fake friend call scams, phishing scams and investment scams.

“Three products from Meta – Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram – are of particular concern and continue to be over-represented amongst the platforms exploited by scammers to contact potential victims and conduct their scams,” said SPF in the report.

More specifically, social media was the most popular contact method between scammers and victims rising from 7,539 cases in 2022 to 13,725 cases in 2023. Of the cases that used social media as a contact method, 71.7% of the cases used Facebook while 18.5% used Instagram and 4.1% used TikTok.

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