Remember this warning the next time you intend to click on a link, as the number of phishing scams, including those in the healthcare industry, has increased in recent years. Phishing scams are a way scammers target victims, commonly through fake links within emails or SMSes disguised as real messages from official organisations.

As many public healthcare institutions rely on emails and SMSes containing links as the main form of

communication with patients, scammers have been known to favour this method to take advantage of unsuspecting victims.

To prevent patients from falling for malicious scams, Sengkang General Hospital has tapped on a new government-provided shortened link in email or text messages sent to members of the public instead of shortened links like bit.ly or .com links. Our emails and SMSes may include the For.sg domain that recipients can recognise easily. 

For.sg is developed by the Government Technology Agency, a statutory board under the Prime Minister’s Office. Thanks to For.sg shortened links, patients can protect themselves from scam links simply by checking if the link contains “for.sg”. This identifies a legitimate government domain that lets you know you are visiting a verified healthcare website. 

Upon clicking the link, you will be taken to a page where its authenticity will be checked before you can proceed further. It works in a similar way to the Go.gov.sg link, which public service officers use to assure the public that the link is not fake.

Plus, the shortened links can only be created by healthcare professionals, so you can be sure it is from a trustworthy source. It also allows file sharing via a customised and trustworthy short link. 

"This builds public awareness against clicking into suspicious links and in turn, gives our patients and their next-of-kin the confidence and assurance to access our online forms," adds James Chew, Manager, Business Office, SKH.

 

For example: 

​Scenario	​How SKH uses For.sg to combat scams
​Patient rushes to SKH Emergency Department with a family member. In their haste, they did not sign and complete the Medical Claims Authorization Form (MCAF), which is required to authorise MediSave withdrawals.	​SKH has made it easy to submit the MCAF on a mobile phone. After downloading a digital copy of the form from SKH website via the link For.sg/mcaf, the patient can easily submit by e-filling and e-signing it, then saving it into their phone before uploading via For.sg/skhsubmit.
​A patient's next-of-kin (NOK) lives far away and does not know how to complete financial documents on their own. It is inconvenient to make the trip to SKH just to submit a form.	​Many of us are already familiar with using our smartphones to scan QR codes during COVID-19. Similarly, the NOK can scan a QR on his mobile phone that will allow him to complete and submit the financial documents via For.sg/skhsubmit. Instructions are also included in the online form to guide the user in filling and submitting the necessary document(s).
​On the other hand, some people prefer to submit financial documents by hand, as they do not trust the postal service (or snail mail) or email, fearing it would get lost or land in the hands of the wrong party.	​The submission form on For.sg/skhsubmit is developed using FormSG, a secure form platform also created by GovTech, so there is no fear that the documents submitted would go missing. Once submitted successfully, the submitter also receives an acknowledgement email. When submitting online via this link, people need not take leave from work to go to the hospital and spend time waiting in line.