SINGAPORE - Twelve men allegedly linked to a money-laundering syndicate believed to be behind a recent spate of banking-related malware cases have been arrested.
On Thursday, the police said they had received numerous reports concerning banking-related malware cases from June to August 2023. They typically involve unauthorised transactions made from victims’ bank accounts, even though these victims did not share their one-time passwords (OTP) with anyone.
The police did not give details on how the malware was downloaded, but in some previous cases, victims were duped into downloading the malware under the pretext of making payments for bogus services or products.
The men, aged between 21 and 36, were arrested on Wednesday and Thursday during an enforcement operation conducted at various locations across the island.
During the operation, police seized cash totalling over $13,000, two laptops, 32 bank cards, 23 mobile devices, drug paraphernalia, and a knife. Sixty bank accounts were also frozen to prevent further misuse.
The suspects are currently being investigated for a variety of offences, including assisting another to retain benefits from criminal conduct, possession and consumption of controlled drugs, acting as a member of an unlawful society and locally linked organised criminal group, and unauthorised access to computer material.
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Six of the men will be charged in court on Friday for illicitly transferring the gains from criminal activities. If convicted they can be jailed up to 10 years, fined up to $500,000, or both.
Police investigations into all the men are ongoing.
The police urged the public not to download applications from third-party or dubious sites, as these may contain malware that steals confidential data such as banking credentials.
They also said those who allow others to use their bank account or mobile lines for unlawful activities will be held accountable as accomplices to crimes.
The police said previously that over 750 victims have lost at least $10 million in total in the first half of this year through malware-related scams.
For more information on scams, visit www.scamalert.sg or call the anti-scam helpline on 1800-722-6688.
Anyone with information on scams may call the police hotline on 1800-255-0000, or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness
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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.