£50,000 was stolen from Jersey residents in a bank scam in one day.

It has been reported in the JEP.

• FIFTY thousand pounds vanished from Islanders’ bank accounts in a single day after fraudsters posing as bank staff tricked victims into handing over security codes.
• The new scam involved swindlers calling people in Jersey on Sunday and pretending to be from their bank – in this instance, HSBC.
• Victims were manipulated into sharing their one-time passwords or authentication codes from their banking apps.
• Once these codes were shared, scammers gained full access to victims’ bank accounts and rapidly transferred large sums of money.
• The two cases reported to the States police so far amount to £50,000 in losses, but officers fear it may have affected others who have not come forward or have yet to realise they have been scammed.

Det Con Paul Otter explained

• That such scams rely heavily on social engineering – a tactic where fraudsters use psychological manipulation to trick people into revealing confidential information or taking actions that compromise security – and are becoming increasingly sophisticated.

‘Nobody is off-limits’ to fraudsters, police warn

• “Fraud itself has completely changed,” he explained. “[Fraudsters] are there for money. They don’t care who they contact – it could be me, you, or someone extremely vulnerable. Nobody is off-limits.”
• “They ring up, purporting to be from HSBC in this instance, but it can be any bank or any company, and very quickly, they will do something where you inadvertently and without your knowledge, give them access to your accounts,” he added.
• With access to banking accounts, fraudsters can recall recent transactions or linked accounts to earn their victim’s trust and appear legitimate.
• “They might say, ‘I can see you were at a petrol station yesterday’, or, ‘I can see a cancelled transaction on your account.’
• “That convinces the victim they’re speaking to the bank, when in reality, money is being moved.”
• Det Con Otter stressed that banks would not demand information or access over the phone, and to be “very wary” if a bank called out of the blue. He advised people to wait 10 minutes after terminating the call before calling their bank’s branch number.
• “If in doubt, hang up, contact the bank yourself, or go into the branch,” he said.
• “I’d rather that you hung up on your bank, who were legitimately calling you, and then you go and check it’s correct, rather than the other way around, and losing money.” Victims who believe they have been targeted should contact their bank immediately, as some transactions may still be stopped if reported promptly, and then report the matter to the police.

How are scams evolving?

■DC Otter said that the increasing sophistication of artificial intelligence (AI) had also heightened the risk posed by scammers.

• Using such software can help scammers craft perfect responses, speed up their processes, and even trawl leaked data for phone numbers. “[Using AI] takes the thought process out and potentially the error process out,”  
• AI-generated videos and impersonations are already being used in romance fraud. They are likely to become more common, with dates and times now integrated into fake videos, making authentication significantly harder.
• People can create fake videos and pretend to be the people they’re purporting to be. And in those videos, they look genuine.”
• Another prime example of social engineering is QR codes being strategically placed in locations such as car parks, where people scan them to pay for a service.
• The website may look real, but fraudsters could create it to steal funds.

This has not yet been reported locally, but Islanders should be aware of the risk when travelling outside of the Channel Islands, he said.

• Fraudsters may also ask you to download software to your device. While the screen may appear as usual, a scammer may, in reality, have access to everything on an individual’s computer.
• “Gone are the days when people who fell victim were elderly or vulnerable. I think now everyone is falling victim to it.”
• “Be extremely vigilant. And you know, it’s your hard-earned money. You don’t want to be giving it away.”
• Islanders are encouraged to familiarise themselves with fraud recognition strategies.
• The Jersey Fraud Prevention Forum, formed by relevant local agencies, helps protect and educate residents about the dangers posed by scammers and offers help, advice, and support. Head to fraudprevention. je.

SOURCE

https://app.jerseyeveningpost.com/50000-stolen-in-bank-scam-in-one-day/content.html By Gemma Jones gemmaj@allisland.media