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Bank customers in bogus call warning
By Martin Cassidy
BBC NI consumer affairs correspondent
Gangs are claiming to offer refunds on bank charges
Thousands of people across Northern Ireland are being told they are in line for refunds on bank charges.
The trouble is the calls are bogus and are just one of a new suite of con tricks being used to steal people's banking details.
Criminal gangs are now targeting Irish bank account holders as never before and even bank staff are finding it difficult to spot the fakes.
The scale of the attempted fraud is underlined by First Trust Bank who have revealed that in just two days last week, more than 25,000 customers received fraudulent emails asking for confirmation of account and PIN numbers.
Such is the standard of the email design, even bank staff find it difficult to tell which emails are fake.
The criminal gangs are also enhancing their approach to potential victims by using innocent-sounding telephone surveys to find out which bank they use.
It may be weeks later before the unsuspecting victim gets a phone call from what they think is their bank.
Armed with personal details, the fraudsters can even deceive people working in the financial sector.
Shirley Houghton, who works for a bank herself, has experienced the new approach by the fraudsters.
"If someone said they were going to refund you £350 a lot of people would say that's fantastic and give the information right away."
New warnings
Never before have Irish banks faced this intensity of attack and security managers like Eamonn McCoy of First Trust says account holders need to be warned of the new level of threat.
Shirley Houghton, who works for a bank, was contacted by the gang
"A bank such as ourselves will never ask you for your PIN number, your account number or your log-in details because we have that on our systems."
And that is the crux of the issue.
While the fraudsters are using ever more devious ways to get us to part with our bank details, as long as we keep them to ourselves, they can't get their hands on our cash.
So, be prepared to receive calls from assured-sounding people and be aware the telephone numbers given over the phone or by email may simply direct you to a call centre set up by the fraudsters.
If you are in doubt phone the bank back using the number you know to be correct, not one supplied by the person on the end of the line.
Inevitably some people will be worried about the latest developments but the best defence is to simply to refuse requests to hand over key account details.
By Martin Cassidy
BBC NI consumer affairs correspondent
Gangs are claiming to offer refunds on bank charges
Thousands of people across Northern Ireland are being told they are in line for refunds on bank charges.
The trouble is the calls are bogus and are just one of a new suite of con tricks being used to steal people's banking details.
Criminal gangs are now targeting Irish bank account holders as never before and even bank staff are finding it difficult to spot the fakes.
The scale of the attempted fraud is underlined by First Trust Bank who have revealed that in just two days last week, more than 25,000 customers received fraudulent emails asking for confirmation of account and PIN numbers.
Such is the standard of the email design, even bank staff find it difficult to tell which emails are fake.
The criminal gangs are also enhancing their approach to potential victims by using innocent-sounding telephone surveys to find out which bank they use.
It may be weeks later before the unsuspecting victim gets a phone call from what they think is their bank.
Armed with personal details, the fraudsters can even deceive people working in the financial sector.
Shirley Houghton, who works for a bank herself, has experienced the new approach by the fraudsters.
"If someone said they were going to refund you £350 a lot of people would say that's fantastic and give the information right away."
New warnings
Never before have Irish banks faced this intensity of attack and security managers like Eamonn McCoy of First Trust says account holders need to be warned of the new level of threat.
Shirley Houghton, who works for a bank, was contacted by the gang"A bank such as ourselves will never ask you for your PIN number, your account number or your log-in details because we have that on our systems."
And that is the crux of the issue.
While the fraudsters are using ever more devious ways to get us to part with our bank details, as long as we keep them to ourselves, they can't get their hands on our cash.
So, be prepared to receive calls from assured-sounding people and be aware the telephone numbers given over the phone or by email may simply direct you to a call centre set up by the fraudsters.
If you are in doubt phone the bank back using the number you know to be correct, not one supplied by the person on the end of the line.
Inevitably some people will be worried about the latest developments but the best defence is to simply to refuse requests to hand over key account details.
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