Over S$46 million in potential scam losses averted in joint operation by police, banks
More than 3,300 SMS alerts were sent to over 2,700 bank customers identified as potential scam victims.
New anti-scam safeguards for designated online services were introduced by the Singapore Police Force on Aug 18, 2026. (Image: iStock)
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SINGAPORE: More than 400 scam attempts were disrupted and over S$46 million (US$38 million) in potential losses averted during a two-month joint operation between the police and five banks, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said on Tuesday (Sep 8).
The police’s Anti-Scam Centre (ASC) partnered with five banks – DBS, UOB, OCBC, Standard Chartered Singapore and GXS – for the operation, which took place between Jul 1 and Aug 31 and utilised robotic process automation technology.
During that time, over 3,300 SMS alerts were sent to more than 2,700 bank customers identified as potential scam victims, SPF said in a press release.
Robotic process automation (RPA) technology refers to the use of software or algorithms to automate structured processes. The technology had previously been used by the Anti-Scam Centre to automate information sharing and processing, as well as the sending of SMS alerts to potential scam victims.
“The collaboration allows for rapid information exchange between the ASC and its partner banks, enabling quick identification of potential victims and timely intervention to safeguard their finances,” police said on Tuesday.
SPF added that many of the cases in the latest operation involved investment and job scams, where victims were deceived into making multiple incremental transfers as part of fraudulent online job or investment arrangements.
At least S$127.1 million in potential scam losses were prevented by the Anti-Scam Centre and its partners in the first half of 2026 through proactive interventions, the police said in its mid-year report on scam and cybercrime in August.
Overall, 16,821 scam cases were reported in the first six months of the year, down 14.4 per cent from 19,644 cases over the same period in 2025.
Investment scams accounted for the largest financial losses among scam types, with S$169.8 million lost across 2,256 cases in the first half of the year.
Job scam cases fell 17.3 per cent to 2,247 cases over the same period, while losses from such scams amounted to S$34.9 million.
About 80.8 per cent of reported scams in the first half of 2026 involved victims transferring money themselves, rather than scammers taking control of their accounts.
Source: CNA/ec
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