Police warn of phishing scams involving fake EZ-Link, SimplyGo deals

SINGAPORE: The police on Friday (Mar 28) warned of phishing scams involving fake EZ-Link or SimplyGo advertisements on social media platforms.

At least 97 such cases were reported since Mar 1, with total losses amounting to at least S$156,000 (US$116,000), said the police in a news release.

Victims would encounter advertisements or posts on Facebook and Instagram impersonating EZ-Link or SimplyGo, offering promotions such as "unlimited travel" for S$3.

Those who clicked on the link would be redirected to a phishing website bearing EZ-link or SimplyGo logos that required them to key in credit or debit card details and One-Time Passwords (OTPs) to purchase the EZ-Link cards.

The police noted that in some cases, victims would be first redirected to participate in online games or questionnaires to qualify for the fake promotion. Once they won a "gift box" with a "free EZ-Link" card, they were prompted to key in their card details to pay for the S$3 unlimited travel promotion.

"Victims would only realise that they had been scammed when they discovered unauthorised transactions in their bank accounts. In some cases, the transactions were also made in foreign currencies," said the police.

"All promotions for EZ-Link cards are conducted only on SimplyGo’s website and the social media pages of SimplyGo and EZ-Link," they said, adding that SimplyGo does not offer “S$3 for unlimited travel” deals.

Those who require official information on purchasing EZ-Link cards should visit SimplyGo's website.

In February, the police said that at least S$1.1 billion was lost to scams in 2024.

The total amount lost to fraudsters rose by 70.6 per cent from at least S$651.8 million in 2023, according to the police's annual statistics on scams and cybercrime.

The total number of scam cases also increased by 10.6 per cent to 51,501 cases in 2024, from 46,563 in 2023.