SINGAPORE: The Singapore Police Force (SPF) warned on Tuesday (Jan 28) of a fake police website that appears to lock a user's computer screen in order to obtain personal information.

“Scammers made use of a web browser’s full-screen mode to show a Windows 10 desktop image (which will fill up the entire screen) displaying the fake SPF website,” police said their news release.



Victims would be unable to click on the "Start" button or close and open applications, leading them to assume their desktop was locked.

Police said the fake website would then accuse the victim of "viewing and dissemination of materials forbidden by the law of Singapore" and require that the victim enter their credit card details, including card number, expiry date and card verification value so that they can pay a fine to unlock the browser.



A screengrab shared by the authorities showed an orange banner with the words "Your computer has been blocked" and "You have six hours to pay the fine", as well as blank fields requiring input of credit card details.

"Such websites are actually phishing sites in disguise, designed to extract victims' personal information and banking details from unsuspecting victims, which could result in monetary losses as scammers would use these details to make unauthorised purchases and transactions," said SPF.

"The police do not have access to lock a person's desktop and would also like to clarify that the official SPF website is www.police.gov.sg," it added.



Members of the public are advised to adopt the following measures if they encounter the fake website: