MHA warns public with festive crime campaign

Festive Crime Prevention is the latest campaign from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), aiming to raise public awareness of scams that are especially prevalent during the festive season. MHA collaborated with Clear Channel and media agency Universal McCann Singapore to develop three bursts of creative executions at selected bus shelters in Singapore.The first burst which ran between 4 and 7 December focused on lottery scams, with a fan placed within a gutted transparent 6-sheet advertising panel sending dollar notes continuously flying within the panel. Atop the panel sat an enlarged cheque with 3D polyform wings attached, with a message below reading, “A lifetime to earn it, a minute to lose it.”[gallery link="file" ids="78973,78977"]The second burst which ran between 18 and 31 December focused on kidnap scams. Again, a 6-sheet advertising panel was used, this time with a telephone and receiver attached and a message; “Pick up the phone.” Upon lifting the receiver, a conversation between a scammer and a victim can be heard. At the end of the conversation, a message to stay vigilant at all times and not be an easy target is played.Information and assistance on such scams could be easily retrieved with a smartphone through a tap or scan on the Connect tag, positioned on the 6-sheet panels.The third and final burst of the campaign is being scheduled for end-January to mid-February 2015.Each burst ran on 200 6-sheet posters, and the entire campaign is integrated across print, digital and radio platforms from April 2014 to March 2015.The objective of the campaign is to educate the public of the common scams in Singapore and to remind them that self-vigilance is the first line of defence. “By expanding our outreach through new creative mediums via Clear Channel,” said She Zhaozuo, operations officer of the Community Involvement Division of the Singapore Police Force.