Cybercrime cases in Singapore increased by 425 per cent in the first six months of the year.

According to Singapore Police Force, e-commerce crime cases rose from 96 in 2013 to 504 in this year’s first half, accounting 1.4 per cent of the total crime in the city-state.

“The latest statistics show a distinct shift to crimes being perpetrated online. The most effective way to combat this is through crime prevention,” said Tan Boon Gin, Singapore Police Force director of commercial affairs.

“In addition to our public education efforts, we will be studying the crime patterns to see how we can work with online platforms and financial institutions to remind users about online scams at the most opportune moments of a transaction.”