At least $1.3m lost in October to scammers posing as Simba staff and government officials

Fraudsters posing as Simba staff would claim victims’ details had been compromised and route calls to fake government officials who would trick targets into handing over large sums of money.

ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY

Published Oct 29, 2026, 03:08 PM

Updated Oct 29, 2026, 03:08 PM

Police warned of a scam where callers pose as Simba staff, then fake government officers, to steal money. At least $1.3 million was lost in October across 59 cases.

Victims were told they had made fake iPhone or plan purchases, then pressured to send cash, valuables, or money to bank accounts. One victim lost $285,000.

Police said scams linked to Simba are rising. They reminded the public that officials will never ask for transfers, loans, log-ins, or apps from unverified stores.

SINGAPORE – Be on alert for scams where fraudsters pretend to be telco staff from Simba before patching victims through to fake government officials to trick them into transferring large sums of money.

At least $1.3 million has been lost to this tactic in October alone, with 59 cases reported within the month, said the police in a news release on Oct 29 .

In this type of scam, victims typically receive unsolicited calls from someone claiming to be from Simba, with the caller falsely alleging that the victims have purchased iPhones or subscribed to the telco’s mobile plans or packages.

When the victims deny making these transactions, the calls are transferred to another scammer posing as a customer service staff from Simba, who then claims the victims’ details have been misused for purchases and that further investigations are required.

From there, the calls are then transferred to other scammers posing as police officers or officers from the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Victims are then instructed to transfer money to unknown bank accounts or physically hand over cash or valuables, such as jewellery or luxury watches, to the purported officers.

Many victims only realised they had been scammed when the fraudsters became uncontactable, or when they contacted government agencies directly to verify the claims.

In one case, a single victim transferred a total of $ 285,000 to the scammers.

Scams involving Simba have been on the rise.

On Oct 21, the police issued an advisory warning of an uptick in phishing scams impersonating the telco through search engine results, with more than $83,000 lost across at least 62 cases since March.

Police statistics show that scams remain the dominant crime type in Singapore, with $410.6 million lost to these ruses in the first half of 2026.

Eight in 10 victims are still being manipulated into handing funds over to scammers, with seniors aged 65 and above suffering the highest losses on average across all age groups.

The police reiterated that government officials in Singapore will never ask you to transfer money, valuables or cryptocurrency, and will not transfer calls to the police or other government officials.

The authorities will also never ask the public to take out loans from moneylenders, disclose banking log-in details or install mobile apps from unverified app stores.

The public should also be wary of unsolicited calls claiming that they have made purchases or transactions they do not recognised, the police added. Those who receive such calls should verify the caller’s claims directly with relevant businesses or the authorities through official channels.

Anyone with doubts or scam-related queries should call the 24/7 ScamShield Helpline on 1799 .

For information on scams, go to www.scamshield.gov.sg .

Monetary Authority of Singapore

诈骗分子冒充 Simba 员工，声称受害者的个人信息已被泄露，并将电话转接到假冒的政府官员，这些官员会诱骗受害者交出大笔钱财。

照片：郑信太郎

发布于 2026 年 10 月 29 日下午 3:08

更新于2026年10月29日下午3:08

警方警告，近期出现一种诈骗手段，骗子冒充辛巴公司员工，然后又假扮政府官员，以骗取钱财。10月份共发生59起案件，损失金额至少达130万美元。

受害者被告知他们购买了虚假的iPhone或套餐，然后被迫将现金、贵重物品或钱款汇入银行账户。其中一名受害者损失了28.5万美元。

警方表示，与Simba相关的诈骗案件正在增加。他们提醒公众，官方机构绝不会要求用户转账、贷款、提供登录信息或下载未经认证的应用。

新加坡——请警惕诈骗，诈骗分子冒充Simba电信公司员工，然后将受害者转接到假冒的政府官员，诱骗他们转账大笔资金。

警方在 10 月 29 日的新闻稿中表示，仅 10 月份，这种诈骗手段就造成了至少 130 万美元的损失，当月共报告了 59 起案件。

在这种类型的骗局中，受害者通常会接到自称来自 Simba 的陌生人打来的电话，来电者谎称受害者购买了 iPhone 或订阅了该电信公司的移动套餐。

当受害者否认进行这些交易时，电话会被转接到另一名冒充 Simba 客服人员的诈骗者，该诈骗者会声称受害者的详细信息已被滥用于购物，需要进行进一步调查。

然后，这些电话会被转接到其他冒充警察或新加坡金融管理局官员的诈骗分子。

随后，受害者被指示将钱款转移到未知的银行账户，或者将现金或贵重物品（如珠宝或名表）实际交给所谓的警察。

许多受害者直到骗子联系不上，或者直接联系政府机构核实诈骗行为时，才意识到自己被骗了。

其中一起案件中，一名受害者总共向诈骗分子转账了 285,000 美元。

涉及辛巴的诈骗案件呈上升趋势。

10 月 21 日，警方发布公告警告称，通过搜索引擎结果冒充电信公司进行的网络钓鱼诈骗案件激增，自 3 月以来，至少 62 起案件造成超过 83,000 美元的损失。

警方统计数据显示，诈骗仍然是新加坡的主要犯罪类型，2026 年上半年因这些骗局造成的损失高达 4.106 亿美元。

十分之八的受害者仍然被骗子操纵，将钱财交给骗子，其中 65 岁及以上的老年人在所有年龄组中平均损失最大。

警方重申，新加坡政府官员绝不会要求您转移金钱、贵重物品或加密货币，也不会将电话转接给警方或其他政府官员。

当局也绝不会要求公众向高利贷者贷款、泄露银行登录信息或从未经核实的应用商店安装手机应用。

警方补充道，公众还应警惕主动打来的电话，这些电话声称他们进行了自己并不认识的购买或交易。接到此类电话的人应直接通过官方渠道向相关商家或有关部门核实对方的说法。

如有任何疑问或与诈骗相关的问题，请拨打 24/7 ScamShield 热线 1799。

有关诈骗的信息，请访问 www.scamshield.gov.sg。

新加坡金融管理局