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OCBC Bank Makes Goodwill Payouts to SMS Phishing Scam Victims

OCBC Bank has begun making goodwill payouts since 8 January 2022 to customers who had fallen prey to the recent SMS phishing scam. To date, more than 30 customers have received them.

The payouts to this group of customers are made on goodwill basis after thorough verification, taking into account the circumstances of each case.

This scam was particularly aggressive and highly co-ordinated, preying on people’s fear that there was an issue with their bank accounts or credit cards as past cases of SMS phishing scams largely targeted consumers with ‘too good to be true’ deals.

OCBC said that its investigation has confirmed that victims who had fallen prey had provided their online banking log-in credentials to phishing websites.

Thereafter, the scammers were very fast in fraudulently transferring the monies out of the customers’ bank accounts.

The bank added that a dedicated team had been set up to support the victims and to address their concerns.

OCBC also acknowledged that its customer service and response fell short of its customers’ expectations during the period but reassured the affected parties that it needed more time as the investigations into these cases are complex and extensive involving multiple checks and parties.

Helen Wong

Helen Wong, Group Chief Executive Officer at OCBC Bank said,

“I want to assure our customers and members of the public that our banking systems and digital banking platforms are safe and secure. Digital banking remains a convenient way to do banking. We do not want this scam to take that away from us. But, scammers are increasing in sophistication.

Therefore, I urge everyone to stay alert and do your banking only at the Bank’s official websites and on the official mobile apps. Together with the Association of Banks in Singapore and the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the industry will review to further strengthen the anti-fraud detection and prevention measures.”