SINGAPORE, Dec. 2 -- Singapore Customs has issued a warning about two new parcel scam variants that have recently emerged, in which scammers impersonate the agency or its officers to defraud victims, CNA reported.

In the first variant, victims receive emails from a Gmail account claiming that their parcel is being withheld for compliance reasons, CNA reported.

The email is accompanied by a fake inspection notice, falsely attributed to a senior Customs official, and asks the recipient to attend an on-site inspection.

Scammers offer an alternative to physically attending the inspection: paying a "verification fee" into a Malaysian bank account, with a promise that the parcel would be released and the fee refunded afterwards.

Recipients ...