Scammed while travelling? OCBC rolls out free in-app calls for all customers

[SINGAPORE] OCBC said on Monday (Nov 24) it is introducing in-app calls on its digital banking apps as part of its anti-fraud push.

Retail banking customers will progressively be able to make calls to the bank’s contact centre through the OCBC app from November.

This is on the back of OCBC’s corporate customers’ being able to make in-app calls to the bank’s contact centre via the OCBC Business app since June.

Moreover, in-app calls will not incur international direct dialling charges.

This is particularly valuable to customers who need urgent assistance while abroad, especially in cases of suspected credit card fraud or account security concerns.

Data from OCBC shows that business and retail banking customers make a total of over 8,000 calls to the bank each month while they are overseas.

Additionally, the in-app capability prevents impersonation fraud, said the bank in a Monday release.

“Security questions and SMS one-time passwords (OTPs) to verify customers who call banks’ hotlines may be increasingly susceptible. Technological developments and sophisticated social engineering tactics are enabling scammers to more easily phish SMS OTPs,” it explained.

As a result, Singapore’s banking industry is pushing to reduce reliance on SMS OTPs, noted the statement. “As personal information becomes more accessible online, security questions may also gradually lose effectiveness,” the bank added.

SEE ALSO

OCBC app adds 8 digital wallets from across South-east Asia

In-app calls to customers to start from H1 2026

On top of calls to the bank, in-app call capabilities will be leveraged for outbound calls to customers, by its retail and business banking contact centres, as well as its anti-fraud team, said OCBC.

The Singapore bank targets to begin these calls from the first half of 2026.

“This added layer of verification aims to reduce the risk of impersonation scams, where scammers pose as bank staff and make calls to victims,” said OCBC.

The number of government officials impersonation scams this year stood at 1,762 – nearly triple that of last year. These cases often involve impersonation of bank representatives.

Sunny Quek, head of global consumer financial services at OCBC, noted that calls remain a key channel of communication between banks and customers, particularly in urgent situations.

“Yet, we recognise that trust in phone calls has eroded... as scam calls have become common, and their tactics... more sophisticated,” he said.

This means that in-app calling capabilities are hence powerful as it helps restore confidence by ensuring that calls happen in a “secure, authenticated space’.

“It is also intuitive and more convenient for customers to make calls from within the app,” said Quek.