Over S$753K Lost To Scammers Posing As Shopee Employees Since Mar, S’pore Police Issue Statement

Police & Shopee Release Joint Statement Addressing Scammers Posing As Shopee Employees

Although it may be tempting to earn quick returns when presented with an enticing offer, it may be best to double check the authenticity of the sender before you accept a job offer.

An online job scam variant involving fake Shopee employees has been going around recently, and victims have lost a total of about S$753,000 to scammers since March.

In this scam, individuals posing as Shopee employees would ask victims to complete small tasks in exchange for a fee.

Scammers would then offer the victims a higher-paying job as a “Shopee Assistant”, where victims transferred money to scammers to access “task packages”.

This would continue until victims found themselves unable to withdraw their earnings after topping up their accounts to a higher amount.

S$753k lost to scammers posing as Shopee employees

The Singapore Police Force (SPF) and Shopee Singapore cautioned the public to a recent job scam variant through a joint statement released on Monday (22 May).

Since March, scammers impersonating Shopee personnel have apparently been contacting victims via Telegram or WhatsApp. These victims were asked to “like” items listed on Shopee, or complete a survey in return for a small sum.

These scammers would write personalised messages using easily obtainable information, and even create fake employee identification to convince victims.

Those who completed the small tasks would be offered a higher-paying role of a “Shopee assistant”.

Scammers would then send victims a fake Shopee link, prompting victims to register an account with them.

They were then asked to choose a pre-paid “task package”. Victims would transfer money to bank accounts provided by scammers, before completing tasks which promised higher returns.

Victims would initially receive increased earnings, causing them to let their guard down and top-up their accounts for higher returns.

They would later find themselves unable to withdraw their earnings, or contact the scammers.

At least 46 people have lost a total of about S$753,000 to this scam.

Be wary of messages outside of official platforms

In their joint statement, SPF and Shopee advised members of the public to remain vigilant.

The e-commerce platform has clarified that they do not have any job positions titled “Shopee Assistant”.

Shopee further explained that they do not require any prospective staff member to pre-pay any fee to secure a job, and do not offer payment in exchange for likes on their products.

The platform will also only contact consumers through official channels including:

•  the Shopee app
• verified social media and WhatsApp accounts
• official email addresses

The Shopee website lists all the official modes of communication. Below are the Shopee WhatsApp accounts which have verified green ticks, as well as their respective purposes:

To reduce the risk of falling victim to such scams, the public can adopt precautionary measures, such as installing the official ScamShield app, setting transaction limits on Internet banking transactions, and setting up multi-factor authentication for their bank, social media and Singpass accounts.

Those feeling sceptical when contacted by persons claiming to be from authorised platforms can also reach out to official sources for verification.

Alternatively, you can visit the ScamAlert website, or dial the anti-scam hotline at 1800-722-6688 for assistance.

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Featured image adapted from the Singapore Police Force.