Singapore’s financial cybercrime problem is fixable

Singapore has emerged as a highly digitalized market post-pandemic and is widely regarded as an innovation hub in Southeast Asia. Research from Google, Temasek and Bain indicates that ASEAN’s digital economy will surpass S$396 billion (US$300 billion) in gross merchandise value by 2025, with financial services digitalization a primary growth factor.

Singapore’s financial services sector is one of the most innovative and competitive in the world; financial institutions are increasingly adding new offerings, features and interactive customer experiences. However, this rapid digital transformation has attracted cybercriminals seeking to exploit the growing digital landscape.

Financial institutions handle sensitive personal and business data for thousands of customers, including banking details, login credentials and high-value transactions. This makes these companies extremely vulnerable and frequent targets of cyberattacks in Singapore, often through malware or phishing attacks – making the financial services sector one of the most targeted industries by cybercriminals today.

Singapore’s financial services industry was the leading target of phishing attacks in 2022 according to the Cyber Security Agency (CSA) in Singapore, with more than 80% of reported phishing sites found to be impersonating financial institutions.

In most attempts, fraudsters spoofed banking and financial services, most of which were external threats, according to the 2024 DBIR by Verizon.

Huge losses from banks and pension funds

Nearly 2,000 Singaporean victims fell for a spate of Android malware scams and at least S$34.1 million was lost in 2023, according to the Singapore Police Force (SPF) annual scams and cybercrime brief in February 2024.