New scams via social networks

Staff of a commercial bank in Bien Hoa City guides people how to ensure safety when dealing online

Unexpected situations

It can be said that the form of online banking transactions is contributing to gradually change the shopping and consumption habits of people. Besides the benefits, online banking is also risky. Some subjects take advantage of loopholes and caught off-guard of users to commit fraud, appropriation of assets with many sophisticated tactics.

Specifically, as the case of Ms. Ph. (living in Tan Phong Ward, Bien Hoa City), which specializes in hunting cheap goods to sell via Facebook, has just lost nearly 10 million VND when selling online.

Ms. Ph. In April 2020, a Facebook account named Nguyen contacted her to order bags, perfumes, shoes ... worth more than 5 million VND. Because these items are of high value, Ms. Ph. required customers to transfer money before delivery. When receiving the message that the account has received money, Ms. Ph. hurry to deliver goods to the customer without knowing that they have been cheated because the customer remittance is missing up to 3 zeroes not behind the amount to be sent.

Specifically, the item was worth 5.5 million dong (five million five hundred thousand dong), the buyer would only transfer 5.5 thousand VND (five thousand five hundred dong). However, when she discovered the incident, The goods have been delivered to the recipient.

When reviewing the people who used to buy goods, Ms. Ph. discovered, before that there were a few Facebook accounts to buy from her and manipulate transactions similar to Nguyen account. This account also bought quite a lot of goods and all the transfers were missing three 0s behind the sent amount. Add 2 orders, the total loss of Ms. Ph. damage was nearly 10 million VND. When contacting the delivery unit, Ms. Ph. just know that the fraudulent orders all have one address and receive the goods in another, so it is difficult to determine the real address of the object.

Ms. Ph. said, currently asking the bank to support the statement of transactions from the previous months, if she finds out the damage is too great, she will ask the law to intervene.

One of the most common tricks in online banking today is that the bad guy tricked the victim into accessing websites with the same interface as the bank's websites to steal OTP and steal money in their account. Item. However, in order to deceive customers, crooks have thought of a situation that few people would have expected.

Recently, the Provincial Police Investigation Agency has prosecuted a case of fraudulent property appropriation through buying and selling goods on social networks. According to a police investigation in February 2020, Mr. N.L.T.T. (located in Trang Dai Ward, Bien Hoa City) for sale of a Ford Ecosport car on a website for selling cars. On February 21, a person claiming to be Long sent a message via Social Media Zalo to ask to buy Mr. T's car.

After the two parties exchanged back and forth and agreed on the price, the subject asked Mr. T. to provide a bank account number to transfer the car deposit. Immediately, this subject sent a message to Mr. T. for depositing a deposit of 4,293 USD; At the same time, he requested Mr. T. to access a website address sent by him via Zalo to convert from USD into Vietnamese currency.

Mr. T. has accessed this website and followed the instructions of the subject, even providing OTP. Just a few minutes later, Mr. T. "dozen fire" when constantly receiving messages from the bank notice of deducting money in the account. Specifically, the bank's switchboard informed 10 messages, deducting a total amount of 499 million VND from the account.

Constantly alert for fraud

From the beginning of 2020 until now, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Information and Communications have continuously issued recommendations for raising people’s awareness and guard, not to transfer money or provide personal information to strangers over the phone, especially confidential Access password, OTP code in online banking transactions.

Explaining the reason for the easy "trap" of cybercriminals through online banking transactions, Deputy Director of the State Bank of Vietnam Dong Nai branch Pham Quoc Bao said that today, along with the rapid expansion of modern banking services, fraudulent forms, and high-tech crime also tend to increase both in number and form.

In addition to the method of attack via distribution of malicious code, email links for customers to reveal users (usernames), passwords, card codes, thereby appropriating properties in customers' accounts, objects Criminals apply new "tricks" to take advantage of customers 'access to public Wi-Fi networks to obtain information about transaction passwords or install malicious software on customers' mobile devices to steal information.

Meanwhile, many customers are not familiar with the manipulations of online banking transactions; has not focused on the privacy of personal information such as passwords, OTP codes ... so it is easy to fall into the "trick" of high-tech criminals.

In current situation of complicated developments of high-tech crimes, in order to limit risks and ensure the interests of account holders when conducting online banking transactions, Mr. Pham Quoc Bao requires banks to focus on implementing solutions. measures such as building information technology infrastructure to meet security requirements, building a team of skilled, professional and technologically qualified employees to handle risks, promptly detect and denounce Crime…

In addition, according to Mr. Bao, there should also be close cooperation between the three parties including banks, customers and management agencies (the Public Security and Information and Communication Industry) in the prevention control of hi-tech crimes  and troubleshooting.

Nhat Huy – Ha Giang