SINGAPORE – A person lost at least $4.9 million after falling for a scam involving the impersonation of senior government officials, as the police warned the public to be careful of such ruses.
In this particular case, the victim was invited to a Zoom video conference call that appeared to involve Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, along with other local and overseas government officials, the police said in an advisory on May 14.
The appearances of PM Wong and the officials were created using deepfake artificial intelligence technology.
The police warned that invitations to virtual meetings with high-profile figures – including senior government officials such as Secretary to the Cabinet Wong Hong Kuan – could be part of such scams.
The scammers appear to target business professionals who have had prior interactions with government officials, police added.
The ruse typically begins with fraudsters impersonating senior government officials and informing victims that they are to attend a virtual meeting with the President, ministers and other government officials.
Victims would be asked to provide an e-mail address to receive a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) for the meeting. The scammers would also tell the victims to endorse the NDA and furnish a copy of their identification cards.
