There has been a rise in the number of fraudulent e-mails claiming to be from the head of the Catholic Church in Singapore, Cardinal William Goh, the Church said in a notice on July 4.
The archbishop noted that all e-mail correspondence from him or his office uses only the catholic.org.sg domain name, according to the notice, issued by the Reverend Terence Pereira.
Any e-mail originating from a different domain should be considered inauthentic, said Rev Pereira, who is the chancellor of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Singapore.
“The faithful in Singapore are advised to immediately report any requests for money or fund transfers received via e-mail that appear suspicious or fraudulent to www.csa.gov.sg or www.scamshield.gov.sg,” he added.
In an advisory on June 30, the Archbishop’s Communications Office said the deceptive communications often mimic genuine conversations, building false trust over several messages before initiating a scam.
Noting the 51,501 scam cases in Singapore in 2024 with losses exceeding $1.1 billion, the office said the threat of online fraud is growing. It added: “For 2025, we anticipate and are already seeing AI-powered phishing attacks becoming highly personalised and alarmingly accurate.
“Beyond e-mail, vigilance is crucial on platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram, where scam activities are also on the rise. We must collectively safeguard our community from those who seek to exploit it.”
The Archbishop’s Communications Office also encouraged the Catholic community to inspect e-mail addresses carefully, by always scrutinising the sender’s e-mail address even if the display name seems familiar, and to ensure the authenticity of websites.
“Be cautious when visiting websites that ask for personal details for event registrations or online donations… Verify through official archdiocesan or parish channels if in doubt,” the office added.
It urged the community to utilise trusted resources such as https://www.scamshield.gov.sg/, https://www.csa.gov.sg/ and https://www.catholic.sg/scams-fake-news/
In April 2024, ahead of the late Pope Francis’ visit to Singapore in September 2024, the archdiocese warned of phishing scams related to the visit.
It said that it had received reports of misrepresentation, with people claiming to be associated with the ticketing process for the papal mass.
These people had attempted to acquire the personal information of others.
Christine Tan and Samuel Devaraj for The Straits Times
Catholic Church warns of rise in scam e-mails impersonating Cardinal William Goh
