Fraudulent sites using ministers to solicit investments
A fraudulent website has been soliciting investments in bitcoin by using fabricated comments attributed to Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said in a statement released yesterday.
The site asks readers to make a minimum deposit of $250 into a purported trading platform, Bitcoin Loophole, which would automatically initiate trades on one's behalf. It also requests for credit card or bank account details.
The MAS advises members of the public to exercise extreme caution and avoid providing any financial or personal information.
Anyone who suspects that an investment could be fraudulent or misused for other unlawful activities should report it to the police.
In the past year, there have been websites dishonestly using the names and photographs of ministers and other public personalities to solicit bitcoin investments.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin identified a website that allegedly used his name for potential fraud as "fake news" and "click-bait".
He said: "I am sure you know this ad is fake and you will not profit from it. Please ignore it."
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