Shin Min Daily News, 骗子假冒总理秘书诈骗 用‘深伪技术’诈走逾490万元

(Summarised translation)

Police have warned of a sophisticated scam in which fraudsters impersonated senior Singapore government officials, including the Prime Minister’s secretary, and used deepfake technology to create fake video meetings featuring political leaders. In one case, a businessman was invited via WhatsApp and email to attend a supposed government meeting related to the Strait of Hormuz crisis, asked to sign a confidentiality agreement, and later persuaded to transfer more than S$4.9 million as “emergency funding” after being shown forged documents and AI-generated officials. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong later cautioned the public to verify unsolicited messages through official channels, stressing that government officials would never request money transfers or investments in such a manner.

Experts say that scammers collect extensive information in order to design highly personalised scams. Victor Keong, Senior Lecturer in Information Systems Technology and Design at the Singapore University of Technology and Design, believes that senior executives are accustomed to making quick decisions when matters involve national interests or sensitive issues. Scammers exploit this characteristic and turn it into a weapon against them.