Watch out for phone calls purportedly from OCBC, the bank warns as it observed a spike in the number of phone scams over the past few weeks.
The bank said in a media release on Monday (July 18) that for the period of July 1 to 17, it received 1,081 calls from customers and the public reporting the issue, a sharp rise from 16 calls for the month of April.
According to OCBC, an individual typically receives an automated voice call prompting for a response.
The caller’s number is either a truncated six to seven digit number that looks like a foreign number, a private number with no caller ID, or may even appear as OCBC’s official contact number (+65 63633333) or some variation of it (e.g. 065 63633333).
If the individual follows the instruction to key in a number, the call would be transferred to a Mandarin-speaking person with a non-local accent who would ask for their personal or banking information.
These calls are not legitimate as the bank does not initiate automated voice calls that require an interactive response, OCBC said.
The bank also uses English to communicate with its customers and the public unless they express a preference for a different language.
OCBC added that it will not ask for security information such as PIN or account numbers when verifying the identities of its customers. Customers will also not be asked to make any funds transfer to another bank account, the bank said.
If you receive a similar phone call and have doubts about its authenticity, terminate the call and contact OCBC at 1800-363-3333 (+65 6363-3333 if overseas) for verification.
minlee@sph.com.sg
