• Ng Wei Chang, 26, exploited loopholes in the EZ-Link automatic top-up system
• He recruited five accomplices into the scheme
• Over six months, he wrongfully obtained at least S$265,800 in stored value in 1,250 cards

SINGAPORE — Along with five accomplices, a 26-year-old man ran a syndicate that cheated EZ-Link of at least S$265,800 within a span of six months.

Ng Wei Chang, a Singaporean, was sentenced in a district court to one year and seven months’ jail on Friday (Feb 5). He will begin serving his sentence on Feb 22.

He pleaded guilty to one count each of unauthorised access to computer material and receiving benefits from criminal conduct. District Judge Luke Tan considered another two similar charges for sentencing.

His accomplices, aged between 20 and 29 years old, were not named in court documents as proceedings against them are ongoing.

The police first learned of their scheme when EZ-Link lodged a police report in May 2019, saying it had discovered a large spike in bad debts arising from its stored value cards using the “EZ-Reload” programme, which could be accessed using EZ-Link’s mobile application.

BACKGROUND

The mobile app is free-of-charge, allowing users to top up the stored value of their Ez-link cards using a debit card.

Users can also register for the reload programme, which automatically tops up Ez-link cards with a preselected amount when the balance becomes low.

When users perform a transaction that causes their Ez-link card’s stored value to fall below S$0, the automatic top-up of up to S$50 then kicks in.

For example, if someone paid for a S$5 item with an Ez-link card containing S$2, the programme would automatically top up the card with S$50 — bringing its stored value to S$47.

Those with OCBC bank accounts could use OCBC automated teller machines (ATMs) to convert the stored value in their Ez-link cards into cash.

If the designated source of funds does not have enough money for the reimbursement, EZ-Link’s computer system sends an auto-generated text message to the user’s mobile phone to remind him to make payment for the top-ups.

USED 1,250 EZ-LINK CARDS

Ng’s syndicate made use of this system to register at least 125 EZ-Link accounts on the app between Jan 1 and June 14, 2019.

He linked at least 1,221 Ez-link cards to these accounts and procured another 29 cards from his accomplices. He then used the reload programme to top up the cards.

In order to circumvent the restriction of using a single debit card for the top ups, Ng applied for multiple replacement debit cards from DBS, managing to get at least 165 of them in his name.

He also recruited his friends to give him their DBS debit card information and apply for replacement cards, offering them commissions of S$50 to S$200 for each debit card they procured.

That way, he got another 74 debit cards from at least 15 others for his scheme.

On 5,323 occasions, Ng managed to use the reload programme to top up the 1,250 Ez-link cards he had with a total stored value of at least S$265,800. He then converted this into cash using OCBC ATMs.

He did not deposit enough money in the linked DBS bank accounts or make payment for the automatic top-ups. He also ignored the text message reminders.

Around February 2019, he discovered he could no longer use the OCBC ATMS. He then made purchases, including cigarettes, with the Ez-link cards, and also recruited some accomplices to buy or re-sell cigarettes.

He pocketed the sales proceeds and gave the others commissions. One of them handed over S$1,500 in cash from reselling cigarettes bought from convenience stores.

He has not made any restitution to EZ-Link.

For unauthorised access to computer material, he could have been jailed for up to two years or fined up to S$5,000, or both.

For acquiring the benefits of criminal conduct, he could have been jailed for up to seven years or fined up to S$500,000, or both.