Victims of such scams received messages or e-mails that seemed to come from couriers such as Ninja Van and J&T Express, and were redirected to fake websites resembling the couriers’ official pages.

SINGAPORE – Scam victims have lost more than $259,000 since June 24 through ruses involving fake courier companies phishing for personal and banking information.

At least 43 cases of such scams have been reported since June 24, with no fewer than 20 reported on July 13 alone, the police said in a statement on July 15.

In these scams, victims received messages from numbers bearing Morocco’s country code, +212, or e-mails seemingly sent by couriers such as Ninja Van and J&T Express, telling them that their parcels could not be delivered due to an “invalid” address.

Victims were urged to update their delivery address within 24 hours via a link that closely resembled the respective couriers’ real web address.

In some cases, the messages included a local helpline number and directed victims to access the phishing link through various means, such as replying “Y” to receive the link or opening a separate message containing the link.

Victims who clicked on the link were redirected to a fake website that looked like the couriers’ official pages and were prompted to pay a “re-delivery fee”, typically between six cents and $1.64.

Victims were asked to enter their card details and authorise the transaction using their digital token.

In some cases, victims’ credit cards were added to online payment platforms such as Google Pay or Apple Pay without their knowledge.

Victims discovered they had been scammed only when they saw unauthorised transactions on their cards or bank accounts.

For more information on scams, go to www.scamshield.gov.sg, or call the ScamShield Helpline on 1799.

To report scams, call 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness