NUS Law students visit Tampines to raise awareness of anti-scam measures among elderly

As part of the Faculty’s active outreach efforts to the community, students involved in NUS Pro Bono Group’s Project FIDReC visited Tampines to explain and guide elderly residents on how to protect themselves against scams, as well as how to navigate financial disputes. They engaged the residents at a booth set up by the National Crime Prevention Centre (NCPC) at a Tea with Members of Parliament (MPs) session held on 15 February.

NCPC is a longstanding partner of Project FIDReC, with the latter being a collaboration between NUS Law’s Pro Bono Group and the Financial Industry Dispute Resolution Centre.

Given the rise in the number of scam-related cases at the centre, the project members aimed to raise awareness of anti-scam measures—particularly among the elderly, who are often more vulnerable to such crimes—and they did so by supporting the booth and promoting the materials of Project FIDReC. They were able to learn more about the measures being developed by GovTech at the booth itself, before communicating them to the elderly residents. Recognising the possibility that there may be disputes with financial institutions, the students also explained the possible future steps they could take with assistance from FIDReC.

Yan Hai Rong, one of the Project Directors for AY 24/25, spoke about how the interaction has expanded the students’ world view. “It was an eye-opening experience, as it felt like every resident had a story to share and it made us more aware of the concerns they had about scams in general. Hearing that some of the elderly were genuinely fearful of calls from unknown numbers or unauthorised use of their debit cards was something so out of left field for us, but understandable from their position.”

This experience has reinforced the need for active outreach efforts that address the unique challenges faced by different demographics. Moving forward, the NUS-FIDReC Collaboration is committed to expanding its educational initiatives and strengthening partnerships to foster a more informed and vigilant public. By continuing to engage with the community, the NUS-FIDReC Collaboration hopes to build a more resilient environment where consumers are more confident in navigating financial matters.

About Project FIDReC

The NUS-FIDReC Collaboration (Project FIDReC) is one of the projects under the NUS Pro Bono Group and it collaborates with the Financial Industry Disputes Resolution Centre (FIDReC) as well as various other external partners, such as the National Crime Prevention Centre, to organise talks and support various events.

NUS Law students aim to raise awareness about the precautions consumers can take against predatory or unsavoury practices related to consumer transactions; of FIDReC as a viable, professional and convenient avenue to resolve consumer disputes with financial institutions; as well as how consumers can advocate for themselves at FIDReC.