LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – You probably use your banking app several times a day without giving it much thought, but criminals are definitely thinking of ways to use a very similar application to steal your money.
Credit and debit card company VISA now warning people here in the U-S about a scam that started spreading across Europe earlier this year. It involves a bad app that could give bad actors access to every dime you have in the bank.
Here’s how it works:
Someone posing as a customer service representative from your bank sets the trap by contacting you regarding a fraud issue with your account.
The caller builds a sense of trust with you, and then instructs you to download an application to help resolve the issue.
However – while it may look like a legitimate bank app – it’s actually both counterfeit and malicious.
The caller then tells you to put or tap your credit or debit card on or near the phone – and then they tell you to enter your pin.
That’s when the trap closes.
The scammers now have real-time access to your funds, and they also have all your personal information.
With this scam, as with many others, verification is the key to avoiding a rip-off.
Call your bank *before* you download anything, or give out any personal information, to ensure the problem is real.
If there’s real trouble, authentic bank employees will help handle it.
If not – you’ve foiled a criminal plot just by making a phone call.
Copyright 2024 KVVU. All rights reserved.
