Bob:
One day I received a message from the bank where I receive my salary. Text like this: "The card is blocked due to dubious transactions". There was almost all my money at that time, I immediately called back the number that was at the end of the message.
The call was answered as if by an employee of the bank's security service, introduced himself, gave some common surname: Smith, Doe, something like that. I told him that I had received a message about the blocking of the card, and asked him to figure it out.
Smith, or whatever, did not even bother to find out my passport data or the code word. But he asked if I often have write-offs and replenishments, for what amounts, whether I had used the card at unfamiliar ATMs or shops in recent days. I remembered a new cafe where I had lunch recently.
Then he concluded: your card was considered a "digital skimmer". He spoke in detail about this technology, everything sounded very plausible. At the end, the security officer explained that you can activate the card by excluding it from the blocked database. He asked for the card number, name and surname, expiration date and three numbers on the back. I dictated everything.
Then came the apogee of my stupidity. The security officer said that now a message with a digital code will be sent to the phone. I dictated him too. And two or three minutes later, a message came from the bank that $ 500 had been debited from my card. Then, of course, I was shocked, looked again at the messages and realized: they were from different numbers.
I called the bank. There I was told that they can only block the card so that there are no other charges. Now, if it succeeds, it will not be soon to return the lost amount: the bank considers the application within 30 days.
Financial Culture Expert:
Fraudsters forge SMS from banks, hoping to gain confidence and entice information from the victim that will help them steal money from her account. They can use shocking arguments - for example, write that the card is blocked. It is beneficial for scammers to make a person nervous, it is easier to deceive him. If you find yourself in a situation like this, keep a cool head and give yourself time to process the information.
If the message from the bank looks suspicious
One day I received a message from the bank where I receive my salary. Text like this: "The card is blocked due to dubious transactions". There was almost all my money at that time, I immediately called back the number that was at the end of the message.
The call was answered as if by an employee of the bank's security service, introduced himself, gave some common surname: Smith, Doe, something like that. I told him that I had received a message about the blocking of the card, and asked him to figure it out.
Smith, or whatever, did not even bother to find out my passport data or the code word. But he asked if I often have write-offs and replenishments, for what amounts, whether I had used the card at unfamiliar ATMs or shops in recent days. I remembered a new cafe where I had lunch recently.
Then he concluded: your card was considered a "digital skimmer". He spoke in detail about this technology, everything sounded very plausible. At the end, the security officer explained that you can activate the card by excluding it from the blocked database. He asked for the card number, name and surname, expiration date and three numbers on the back. I dictated everything.
Then came the apogee of my stupidity. The security officer said that now a message with a digital code will be sent to the phone. I dictated him too. And two or three minutes later, a message came from the bank that $ 500 had been debited from my card. Then, of course, I was shocked, looked again at the messages and realized: they were from different numbers.
I called the bank. There I was told that they can only block the card so that there are no other charges. Now, if it succeeds, it will not be soon to return the lost amount: the bank considers the application within 30 days.
Financial Culture Expert:
Fraudsters forge SMS from banks, hoping to gain confidence and entice information from the victim that will help them steal money from her account. They can use shocking arguments - for example, write that the card is blocked. It is beneficial for scammers to make a person nervous, it is easier to deceive him. If you find yourself in a situation like this, keep a cool head and give yourself time to process the information.
If the message from the bank looks suspicious
- Reread the text of the SMS carefully: it should be clear, competent, without typos and "tricks" like replacing zero with the letter "o", the letter "b" with the number "six", etc. But if the message came from the correct number, then do not be afraid that it is written in Latin - banks often use automatic messages in this format.
- Look at the number for contacting the bank: if this is a real message, then it starts with *-800 ... or consists of 3-6 digits. SMS from a private number is a sure sign that scammers are writing to you.
- Before taking any action, call the bank at the number indicated on the back of the card, and clarify how true the information received from the "specialist" is.
- Do not follow the links that are indicated in the message until you are sure of its authenticity.
