How are banks ensuring fair treatment for scam victims with incurring loss?

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In Dec 2022, 469 customers reported a total loss of approximately S$8.5million to phishing scams involving OCBC bank. Earlier in the month, 26 customers reported a loss of S$140,000. Christmas weekend alone saw 186 customers lose $2.7 million.

OCBC paid S$13.7 million as a one-off goodwill payout to its customers in January 2023 to fully cover its losses due to scams. This gesture prompted questions on how banks can sustainably address such issues in the future. The top five scams of 2022 were phishing, job scams, e-commerce scams, investment scams, and fake friend call scams. Phishing scams increased by 41.3% at 7,097 cases as compared to 5,023 cases in 2021. Banks in Singapore have since considerably implemented additional measures to bolster the security of digital banking. Along with these measures, the government is also implementing a framework for equitable sharing of losses that arise from scams.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) explained that “under the framework, all parties have responsibilities to be vigilant and to take precautions against scams.”

Although financial institutions are responsible for protecting their customers through the safeguarding of their accounts among other responsibilities, customers must also take necessary precautions. These include never giving away personal or bank details to anyone.

According to MAS, the proportion of losses each party bears in the event of such scams occurring again will depend on whether and how the respective party has fallen short of its responsibilities.

The government aims to publish the loss-sharing framework in Q3 2023.