My mother almost got scam yesterday by someone impersonating at MAS officer. I managed to overheard the conversation as she was using hands free mode. And the person told her he is from MAS and is investigating someone using her personal information to open bank account and buy insurance.
And she actually gave them her name and where she work .etc. And even trying to cut me off when i ask her to hang up and she just continues talking to them.
And lucky due to her work calls, she hang up and answer the call from work which helps to delay the scammer from scamming her. And provide me with enough time to called MAS to check if there is really such person working in MAS. Which they told me none.
So, i ended up have to scold her loudly for her to wake up and the next time she answer the phone she actually confront the person, and that guy in return ask why she share the information given to her since its top secret. Still…i guess it was a close shave for me.
Sadly… to say, the guy sounds like a local and the phone used is local. Which means scammer no longer operates in overseas. And the person trying to scam her already have 3 people report that number and making me the 4th
But really…targeting seniors is really a despicable move. But still… upon looking at scamshield statistics. most people who got scam are adults and youth.
And i pretty much have to teach her how to use scamshield to verify calls. But still…my worry will be what if its a new number that never been reported before?
And from there i have learned how seniors especially those living along are vulnerable to being scammed as they are eager to find someone to talk and listen to them. How much i hope will do more to protect vulnerable people from scams especially those with mental health issue, special needs and older folks. As most of the time to them having someone to speak to them is just a blessing.
Still…if whatever didnt happen yesterday i wouldnt know there is a app called scamshield. Which i advised everyone to teach their senior parents how to use it to verify calls.
But i guess being a CPTSD sufferer living in poverty, for once, my hypervigilance serves me well.
Thank you for sharing your experience with the community here, and good job for spotting the scam!
Scammers are skillful, and all sorts of people will fall prey to it, no matter their education levels and socioeconomic statuses.
One word of advice is to always call the entity back (e.g., MAS on your case) to verify, and never give away any personal information. Also, since your mother has given away personal information, scam networks will know that she is more susceptible to scams, thus there would likely be more scam calls coming her way (please be mindful of this).
Hi there, thanks for sharing. That really sucks and I can hear how there’s frustration and anger, and worry as well.
You sound like you care a lot — I see your heart, how you hope more can be done for seniors. It was also really really scary that your mum almost fell for the scam call.
I think other response mentions good tips for checking on scams and what your mum can do in the future. I hear there’s an element of anxiety? That’s still in the background even though this incident has come to a close. Which may be to do with the hypervigilence and CPTSD? I just wanted to say that having that in the background does sound tiring and I hope that there are ways to feel safe and have moments of respite for you
Hello @user1446 thank you for sharing this. What happened with your mother was a serious situation, and you handled it really well. The scammer pretending to be from MAS used fear and urgency to pressure her, and it’s scary how convincing these tactics can be especially when they use local numbers and accents. It’s lucky you overheard the call and stepped in when you did. Calling MAS to verify and stopping the call likely saved her from being scammed.
It’s understandable that your mother trusted the caller at first, especially since scammers often target seniors who may feel isolated or eager to trust someone who sounds official. Your quick response and even your hypervigilance became a real strength in that moment.
You’re also right that more needs to be done to protect vulnerable groups like seniors, people with mental health challenges, or special needs. Teaching your mother to use ScamShield is a great step, even though it can’t catch every new scam number. Your experience is a strong reminder that staying alert, informed, and involved really does make a difference.
U are right. Ehh but mine dunno, old man refuse to learn smart hp think he wun kena but he alr gotten into crap that ignorantly signed. My mum dun have e wallets so shld be fine, we help her update hp
Really awful. I used to work at a centre with special needs clients, not by choice. The bettersocial wkers were all quitting quite fast. Honestly i din like how some wld just emote​:angry: We all gotta protect ourselves, dun have to worry abt them.
Huh death penalty too harsh for scammers. Think stil can reform, death shld be more for abusers n sociopaths
Hi @user1446 I hear your anger, towards the scammers that may take away people’s life savings.
It’s a scary situation – I myself find the thought of the situation hard to bear. I hear how you’re hoping there’s some deterrence for scamming through harsher punishment. While I can’t speak for policy changes, I do generally hear that it’s just hard to catch scammers, and most of the times the person in charge of the scam operations are not based in Singapore.
It’s an unsatisfactory reality with today’s highly advanced world. I’m hearing that this situation is quite worrying for you? That it would also lead you to think a bit deeply on it and wonder about harsher punishments. I’m wondering if that’s somethiing that resonates with you? And if so, perhaps what might be some ways we can support in coping with those worries?
you will be surprised the amount of scammers operating in Singapore. And its those operating in Singapore that is hard to detect.
Just imagine, they wear a uniform and walk toward a person with special needs or elderly, threatening them and ask them for money.
The mentality that scammers are from overseas and cannot be caught needs to go. Its that mentality that end up we let go many of the scammers operating locally.
Its really nothing to do with anger. It pretty much of trying to keep those we love safe.
I see, and thank you for your reply! I am someone who tends to look at the reality/current situation. But I think something I took away from what you said, I’m learning as well that it’s also about hoping for a better system, that we may develop better protections for ourselves and advanced ways to track down scammers! I think now I have a bit of a more balanced view — that the reality is that it is hard to track scammers now, but most importantly, let’s also hope that technology and systems develop to better prevent or track down perpetrators.
I see that what’s also really important to you is keeping your loved ones safe. Wondering what are some ways to do so that is within the realm of your control?
We all gotta protect ourselves, dun have to worry abt them.