Given how we have to provide our phone numbers for a lot of online services these days, it’s not surprising that our numbers might have been stolen, leaked, or sold to marketing companies. So much so that it’s become pretty common to receive spam or scam messages. However, the Singaporean government has had enough and has ordered Apple and Google to prevent government spoofing on its messaging platforms.
Apple, Google order to prevent government spoofing
According to the reports, Singaporean police have observed scams coming from Apple’s iMessage and Google Messages. These messages claim to be from companies, such as the local postal service. This is dangerous because it might lead the public to assume that these messages are legit.
The police say, “Members of the public may assume that messages they receive from accounts claiming to be from ‘gov.sg’ on iMessage or Google Messages are legitimate because messages sent through iMessage and Google Messages appear alongside and are not easily distinguishable from SMSes.”
As a result, under Singapore’s Online Criminal Harms Act, the government has ordered Apple and Google to prevent spoofing on its messaging platforms. The government says that both companies have committed to complying with the order. This includes ensuring that profile names of unknown senders are not displayed or displayed less prominently than their phone numbers.
Also, it must prevent accounts and group chats from displaying names that spoof “gov.sg” or other government agencies.
What is spoofing, and how can you protect yourself?
Spoofing refers to a technique where a phone number or email address is disguised to look like someone else. In this case, cyber criminals spoof their numbers to make it look like it comes from a Singaporean government agency.
Postal service scams are pretty common. They usually involve telling the victim that they have a parcel waiting for them. However, they need to pay a fee to release it. Since we do a lot of online shopping these days, it wouldn’t be uncommon for people to have parcels waiting.
One way to protect yourself is to ignore these messages outright. If that’s not possible, another way is to avoid clicking the link in these messages. These links are disguised to look like a legitimate website, but they might end up stealing your personal or financial information. Instead, if you think you have a parcel, check with the retailer or shipping company directly.
