Watch out for criminals wanting remote access

It’s been reported by the Customer Owned Banking Association (COBA) that criminals are using new sophisticated techniques to imitate a customer’s financial institution during fake phone calls - to gain access to devices remotely.

It starts by criminals phoning customers to ask who they bank with and then simulating to connect them to the said financial institution. Fraudsters have even gone to the lengths of replicating on hold messages and music used by the customer’s financial institution, to deceive customers further and gain their trust.

The scammer, who is posing as a representative from the customer’s financial institution, according to COBA, then informs the customer that they have been unable to help them and transfers the call to a member of the ‘Fraud Team’, who is just another member of the scam group.

At this point, a member of the ‘Fraud Team’ attempts to gain access to the customer’s device or computer through a commercial screen sharing application. The scammer will then persuade the customer to open their internet banking – at which point funds and personal information can be taken.

COBA recommends that customers ask themselves the following questions, if they receive a call from their ‘financial institution’:

1. “If someone is calling me about a fraud, why do they need to ask where I bank?”
2. “Is it really my bank calling?”

The ways that fraudsters scam customers out of their money are always changing. Summerland recommends you sign up to Stay Smart Online’s free Alert Service, to keep up-to-date with online threats and how they can be managed.