SINGAPORE, Jan 7: Singapore on Tuesday passed a new law providing the police with powers to order banks to restrict the banking transactions of potential scam victims.
The Protection from Scams Bill comes as scams remain a “grave concern” in Singapore, said Minister of State for Home Affairs and Social and Family Development Sun Xueling as she tabled the Bill for a second reading in Parliament.
“This Bill, passed unanimously, allows the police to act decisively and close a gap in our arsenal against scammers,” Channel News Asia quoted the minister as saying in the House.
The Bill will allow specified officers, including those from the police and Commercial Affairs Department, to issue restriction orders to banks if there is reasonable belief that account holders will be making transfers to scammers.
These restriction orders will suspend money transfers, the use of ATM facilities and all credit facilities, although individuals will still be provided access to their monies for daily living expenses.
“The intent is to buy the police more time to engage and convince the individual that he is being scammed, including through enlisting the help of his family members,” Sun told the House.
She added that the restriction orders would involve the seven Domestic Systemically Important Banks (DSIBs) – DBS, OCBC, UOB, Citibank, HSBC, Maybank and Standard Chartered Bank — which account for the vast majority of consumer bank accounts in Singapore.
The orders can also be issued to non-DSIB banks if there is reason to believe that victims will make transfers to scammers.
Sun said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is “mindful of the need to strike a balance between protecting an individual from further harm and not unduly inconveniencing him”.
Several safeguards are in place, such as requiring restriction orders be issued only “as a last resort if all other efforts to convince the individual have failed”.
Individuals can also appeal to the Commissioner of Police against the restriction orders – a process that MHA will ensure is expeditious, Sun added.
The Bill will limit the duration of a restriction order to “a maximum of 30 days at the outset”. Each order may be extended up to five times if the officer deems it necessary.
After five extensions, the restriction order “must lapse … even if the victim is still at risk of transferring more money to the scammer,” said Sun.
“MHA takes a practical approach to this. We cannot handhold the victim indefinitely, nor do we have the resources to do so,” said the minister.
Close to SGD 15.8 billion has been set aside under banks’ ‘money lock’ feature to protect customers from potential scams.
Scam victims should be counselled by a social worker and provided mental health support, and these social workers could help the police decide if a restriction order would benefit the victim, she added. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel
