It’s good to be wary of scams.
After all, there are a thousand different ways to get swindled these days, and scammers are getting more and more sophisticated by the day.
Being the considerate citizens that we are, the first thing we’d like to do after discovering a scam is to make others aware of it, by warning them of the tricks fraudsters use to get our money.
But what if the scam you’re worried about isn’t actually a scam; what if it’s a legit letter from the police?
Well, believe it or not, that’s exactly what happened recently.
Again.
Another FB Post Claiming a Legit Letter from the Police to be a Scam Went Viral
On 13 Dec, a Facebook user shared a post about what she claimed was a “new TP fine scam”.
It has since been shared over 1,000 times.
She shared a photo of a letter from the Traffic Police, which was a notice of a traffic offence.
“Dear Lee *** ***, a serious traffic offence (s) has been committed. It could have resulted in injury or death,” it said.
And in bold, the letter went on to say: Please pay $100 by 26 May 2021. If the fine is not paid, you will have to go to court and pay a higher fine.
As you can see, on the right of the letter is a box with instructions on how to pay the fine using PayNow. It provides a QR code which the recipient can scan to make the payment.
It’s also stated that the recipient can alternatively make the payment through the police’s website by using their Singpass or Driving Licence to log in, or through AXS or SAM.
The Facebook user, however, believed this was not a legitimate letter, and was instead drafted by a scammer.
“Scammers will ask you to pay using paynow,” the Facebook user warned.
Police: Uh… This One is Real Lah
In a twist that no one saw coming, the police has once come out in May this year and said that the letter was indeed legitimate.
Lest you’ve forgotten, the above viral image was shared just a few days ago.
The person who first shared the photo failed to show further details of the offence, which were detailed on subsequent pages of the notice.
Reader: But… why? Why would someone do that?
Is this your first time on the internet, dear reader?
Reader: It is indeed. In fact, I don’t know how I arrived at Goody Feed.
Most of our readers don’t.
The police explained that motorists who commit traffic offences would receive such notices. These notices will inform them of the details of the offence, as well as any demerit points or fines they may have incurred.
The police advised the public not to spread unverified information and to check with official sources when in doubt over the authenticity of documents or any information they have received.
As for the rest of us, let’s not believe everything we read, whether it’s on the net or on messaging apps.
To know more about real scams, watch these videos to the end instead:
