Synopsis: This is a special-edition podcast series by The Straits Times to raise greater public awareness of the modern scourge of scams in Singapore and globally.

In Singapore, nearly $1 billion has been lost by scam victims since 2016. Mutating and spreading, different types of scams have infiltrated every aspect of our lives, from romance to work. The police are cracking down on offenders. What can you do to protect yourself?

In the series’ fifth episode, ST’s deputy news editor Andre Yeo, crime correspondent David Sun and journalist Jessie Lim speak with Mr Willis Lim, director of the National Cyber Threat Analysis Centre, the research division of the Cyber Security Agency (CSA) that oversees Singapore's cyber security strategy. Mr Lim talks about the ways cyber criminals identify potential victims and new scams the CSA is seeing in 2022. 

Mr Lim explains why the use of Singlish words, which are not commonly found in most dictionaries, makes it much harder for cyber criminals to crack your passwords. He also provides tips on how Singaporeans can protect themselves from tech support scams. 

Highlights (click/tap above):

08:49 How cyber criminals look for victims’ personal particulars online and on the Dark Web

09:36 Why Mr Willis Lim stopped his mother from throwing his phone bill into the dustbin 

11:10 Scams the Cyber Security Agency is seeing in 2022, such as phishing and tech support scams

20:30 How to set a strong password using Singlish and unique passphrases 

21:50 How tech support scams work and the steps you can take to protect yourself 

28:29 The dollar value of personal data stolen from data breaches

Produced by: Andre Yeo ([email protected]), Jessie Lim ([email protected]), David Sun ([email protected]), Ernest Luis, Teo Tong Kai and Paxton Pang

Edited by: Eden Soh 

Read ST's Stop Scams articles: https://str.sg/wWt9

• Anti-Scam Hotline: 1800-722-6688 (9am - 5pm); https://www.scamalert.sg/

• National Care Hotline: 1800-202-6868 (8am - 12am); https://ccs.org.sg/nch/

Follow ST's Stop Scams podcast series here:

Channel: https://str.sg/wuZB

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/wu3e

Spotify: https://str.sg/wuJj

Google Podcasts: https://str.sg/wE7S

SPH Awedio app: https://www.awedio.sg/

Websites: http://str.sg/stpodcasts

Feedback to: [email protected] 

Andre Yeo's articles: https://str.sg/wWtC

David Sun's articles: https://str.sg/wWty

Jessie Lim's articles: https://str.sg/wWtF

---

Discover more ST podcast channels:

All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: https://str.sg/wvz7 

The Usual Place: https://str.sg/wEr7u 

In Your Opinion: https://str.sg/w7Qt 

COE Watch: https://str.sg/iTtE 

Asian Insider: https://str.sg/JWa7 

Health Check: https://str.sg/JWaN 

Green Pulse: https://str.sg/JWaf 

Your Money & Career: https://str.sg/wB2m 

Hard Tackle: https://str.sg/JWRE 

#PopVultures: https://str.sg/JWad 

Music Lab: https://str.sg/w9TX 

---

ST Podcast website: http://str.sg/stpodcasts 

ST Podcasts YouTube: https://str.sg/4Vwsa 

---

Special edition series:

True Crimes Of Asia (6 eps): https://str.sg/i44T

The Unsolved Mysteries of South-east Asia (5 eps): https://str.sg/wuZ2 

Invisible Asia (9 eps): https://str.sg/wuZn 

Stop Scams (10 eps): https://str.sg/wuZB 

Singapore's War On Covid (5 eps): https://str.sg/wuJa 

---

Get The Straits Times' app, which has a dedicated podcast player section:

The App Store: https://str.sg/icyB 

Google Play: https://str.sg/icyX 

#stopscams

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.