‘Tis Black Friday for online shopping, but beware …
Some very valuable tips on avoiding phishing scams when shopping online on Black Friday and ahead of the festive shopping season.
‘Tis Black Friday today, 23 November, and the season for festive shopping, but with it comes the threat of phishing, warned Penny Futter, Chief Information Officer at African Bank.
She explained that phishing is when criminals use a form of electronic communication to try and extract sensitive information like usernames, passwords and credit card details. It is fast becoming one of the leading contributors to fraudulent incidents.
“Unsuspecting customers honestly believe they are speaking to a credible source from their bank or another trusted institution and disclose sensitive information, often under the pretense of a ‘security protocol’,” said Penny.
Once a criminal has your mobile banking PIN or password, a fraudulent SIM swap is conducted on the cellphone number and that allows the criminals to transact as if they were the real account-holder.
“The problem,” she said, “is that although most people are aware of the scams and would not normally give out important information, these fraudsters are so clever and believable that many people still fall victim to their scheme and then are not even aware that they have been scammed until it is too late.”
Online shopping is growing but, said Penny, we should continue to be cautious when shopping online.
“Only use vendors who offer a second form of identification to avoid being scammed. You may want to even consider opening a second bank account for online transactions and keep only keep a minimum balance in the account, topping it up when funds are needed.”
So, while you are merrily spending your hard-earned cash this festive season, take note of these important tips:
• Don’t click on links or icons in unsolicited emails. Do not even reply to these emails. Delete them immediately.
• Type in the URL for your bank in the internet browser if you need to access your bank’s website. Check that you are on the real site before using any personal information. If you think that you might have been compromised, contact your bank immediately. Create complicated passwords that are not easy to decipher and change them often.
• It may be worth considering protecting your passwords using any one of the public and freely available password managers.
• Never carry unnecessary personal information in your wallet or purse and never access your banking site on a public WiFi network.
• Don’t give out any personal details if someone phones you. A bank will never phone you to ask for your PIN.
“If you do get caught and believe your information has been compromised, change your internet banking credentials immediately and advise the bank accordingly,” concluded Penny.
“Let’s all be more savvy this festive season and make sure we don’t take the phishing bait.”
• Source: SABRIC
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