Survey in S’pore Shows You Can be Scammed Multiple Times

By
Boon Hun
-

You’d think that after getting scammed once, you’re unlikely to be scammed again.

But just like with Covid-19, that’s never a guarantee.

In fact, as a recent survey showed, if you were scammed once, you’re actually likely to be scammed again.

Here’s what you need to know.

You Can be Scammed Multiple Times, Survey Finds

According to a survey conducted by the Home Team Behavioural Sciences Centre (HTBSC), 45% of scam victims were scammed more than once between Aug 2019 and Sep 2020.

4,043 Singaporeans and permanent residents were polled in the survey.

60% of them said they encounter scams on an average of 3.17 times per month.

7% said they were scam victims, but that’s not the surprising part.

Nearly half of them were young and working adults between the age of 20 and 39 years old.

Now, you’re thinking, hey, I thought it was the elderly who were more vulnerable to scams?

Don’t worry, there’s a logical explanation for this.

Youths Are More Tech-Savvy, Impulsive & Complacent

According to the assistant director of the crime, investigation and forensic psychology branch at HTBSC, Ms Whistine Chai, there are a few reasons why this is happening.

For one, youths are more tech-savvy, so they spend a lot of time online engaging in social media or using online banking.

These are activities that increase their chances of meeting with scammers.

Another factor, she said, could be due to the impulsive and complacent nature of the youths.

They “tend” not to stop and think, or check with other people before doing anything.

In other words, curb your impulsive and complacent tendencies and you’ll scam-proof yourself.

Statistics For 2020

As you’d probably know by now, scams spiked hard during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Maybe it’s because people are home, and online, all the time. Maybe it’s because we’re all so bored we’re checking new things out.

Whichever it is, that trend held for 2020, where 15,756 scams were reported.

That’s a 65.1% increase from the previous year.

The number of scams reported also made up 42.1% of the overall crime rate last year.

Here are some common factors among the scam victims:

  • Tend to click on pop-up advertisements on websites
  • Open e-mails from unknown sources
  • Don’t understand what safe online practices is all about
  • Believed that the authorities will send emails or text messages with links for them to click on
  • Shared their passwords and OTPs
  • Lack of knowledge on scam tactics and financial literacy
  • Lack of social support from family and friends.

So there you go: if you’re scammed once, be extra careful and work on those things mentioned above because, according to numbers, you’re can be scammed again.

And unfortunately, there’s no vaccine or immunity response available, unlike Covid-19.

On a separate note, if you’re an iPhone user, how about downloading the government app that can help protect against scams?

Feature Image: fizkes / Shutterstock.com

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Boon Hun
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