It seems nothing can keep fraudsters and skelms down - not even a lockdown.
Fraud syndicates are taking advantage of the Covid-19 crisis.
They pretend to be from the banks and ask you for your private banking details.
Do not give them ANYTHING - that includes confirming your name or address - and watch your bank account like a hawk for unauthorised transactions.
Here are some of the more common banking scams that they run:
* The Vishing scam:
Someone pretending to be from the bank will call you.
They will ask you to update or verify your details.
Very often, they will tell you that they are from the “fraud department” of the bank, that money has fraudulently been withdrawn from your account and that they urgently need to confirm all your details so that it gets returned to you.
By now, you are in a state of panic.
And it is at this stage that you would normally give all your details, including your pin.
These criminals are so brazen and so clever, that they will even go as far as to ask you to call them back to confirm that you are actually speaking to someone from the bank.
Sophisticated fraudsters will then have that call diverted to the banks call centre, but by then it is too late.They have all your details already.
Bottomline: Your bank will never ask for your account details, password, pin or OTP (one time pin) over the phone. Ever.
The moment you encounter this, make a note of the number calling you so that you can pass it onto your bank and the police. Then immediately end the call.
* The Phishing scam:
This is the email version of the telephonic Vishing scam.
Fraudsters will send you emails which claim to come from a bank or a reputable email service provider.
The email will sound urgent, telling you that you have to follow their instructions immediately as you have been a victim of fraud.
They will ask you to click on the hyperlink you have received.
Once you do that, you are taken to a fake website (but you can’t see this).
Once they have you on their fake site, they will ask you to share all your details.
When they have all your details captured, they can defraud you.
Report an email like this to your bank and the police immediately.
Banks will never ask for personal pins, passwords. File picture: Pexels
* SMSishing:
This is the same as Vishing and Phishing, but a link is sent to you via SMS.
It still follows the same method of trying to get your details.
We use our phones for everything these days, so we have to be extremely vigilant with our devices when it comes to our private information.
These three are probably the most popular scams, but there are many more.
Skelms target people through holiday scams, romantic scams, dating scams, sim swap scams, number porting scams, donation scams, fake vouchers and refunds.
During lockdown people are even being scammed by receiving messages containing links that claim to have the results of Covid-19 tests - that they have never taken.
Yet, curiosity gets the better of us, we click that link and before we know it, money has been taken from our bank account.
Fraudsters are also asking you to claim a debt relief reward, reverse transactions and transfer your debt review payments into a different account.
Sebastien Alexanderson from National Debt Advisors says: “NDA has not, and will not change our bank details.
AID: Sebastien Alexanderson from the National Debt Advisors
“If someone calls you and asks you to put your debt review payments into any other banking account, please get as much information from this person as possible, and inform us about it, so that we may take it up with the police.
“NDA (and all other reputable, registered debt counsellors) are working with the banks, others in the financial industry and law enforcement agencies to protect you.”
Now, more than ever, people are in financial distress and need money.
If it seems too good to be true, it usually is.
Don’t click on links that you aren’t 100% sure of.
Make your passwords unique and strong.
It is better to be safe than sorry.