Number of online scams spiked sharply in 2015

This has been the trend since 2013.

The number of online crimes in Singapore “rose sharply” last year, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The number of online crimes, particularly scams, has been on the rise since 2013.

The sharp spike in online crimes caused the overall crime rate to tick up year-on-year, the MHA said.

Despite this, almost all other crime classes registered a fall. Violent/serious property crimes and Housebreaking and related crimes have dropped to the lowest levels in 20 years.

The number of unlicensed moneylending harassment cases continues to decline and is the lowest in 10 years. Re-offending by ex-offenders remains low.

​The number of new drug abusers, in particular those aged below 30 years old, continued to rise, but the MHA said that the drug situation rema​​ins stable. 

The number of immigration offenders arrested continued to remain low. There was a decrease in fire incidents and fire fatalities remain low, under 0.1% per 100,000 population in the last 10 years.

The rising incidence of online crime has been well-flagged in Singapore. In December last year, a new kind of malware which disguises itself as a WhatsApp update to illegally access mobile banking apps made the rounds in the city-state, causing some users to lose thousands in cash.
 

Join Singapore Business Review community
A NOTE FROM SINGAPORE BUSINESS REVIEW

The people you want to reach are already in this room.

Every quarter, SBR lands on the desks of the founders, CFOs, and directors running Asia's most consequential companies. Every day, they open our newsletter and read our website. It's a room that took twenty years to build — and it's the one most of our partners are trying to get into.

The good news is that the door is open. We work with companies on thought leadership articles, sponsored content, industry summits across Southeast Asia, regional awards programmes, podcasts, and media placements in print and digital. The shape of the right partnership depends on what you're trying to do, which is why we'd rather start with a conversation than send a rate card.


If you have something this room should know about, tell us. We'll tell you honestly whether we can help, and how.

No rate cards until we understand the brief. It's a better use of everyone's time.

Top News

MPACT prices $200m green notes due 2033
The proceeds will be used to finance or refinance eligible green projects under its green finance framework.
82% of Singapore firms pulled back live AI agents: survey
Despite leading APAC in AI deployment, many enterprises still face reliability, governance, and infrastructure challenges.