Criminals are after your bank accounts in South Africa – what you need to know
The number of criminals engineering ways to access your bank account is on the rise in South Africa, and experts, banks, and fraud prevention services have warned that the popular tactics will be prevalent in 2024.
In 2024, banking scams targeting victims’ bank accounts have surged in South Africa, driven by several reasons.
The increasing digitisation of financial services has created more opportunities for cybercriminals to exploit vulnerabilities.
As more people rely on online banking and digital transactions, the net for scammers has widened, making it easier for them to deceive unsuspecting victims.
According to the Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS), 2024 fraud statistics showed a 32% increase in reported fraud incidents in the previous year.
Banking fraud contributed to 45% of these incidents, followed by the microfinance sector at 19% and retail at 14%.
Sophisticated phishing techniques are a significant contributor to this rise.
Scammers use emails, SMS, and social media to impersonate banks and trick individuals into divulging sensitive information.
These messages often appear legitimate, making it challenging for victims to discern fraud.
Additionally, the economic pressures faced by many South Africans have made them more susceptible to scams promising financial relief or lucrative opportunities.
The rapid advancement in technology has also equipped cybercriminals with advanced tools to execute more complex attacks.
The tactics
SAFPS noted an increase in mobile phone theft, with criminals specifically targeting banking apps.
Cellphones are stolen, and then, by using the banking app on that phone, criminals are somehow gaining access to bank accounts, the SAFPS said.
There has also been an increase in cases of people being defrauded after being hijacked, with criminals forcing them to transfer money using their banking apps.
Discovery Bank also warned consumers of other online scams to look out for – including fraudsters impersonating the banks.
This involves criminals posing as banks and informing the victim of a fraudulent transaction. The victim is asked to provide their account details to reverse the transaction.
Additionally, FNB and the Ombudsman for Banking Services (OBSSA) have warned of the growing trend of targeting digital wallets.
FNB issued a warning to customers about cybercriminals using social engineering attacks, such as phishing and smishing, to trick users into sharing sensitive information.
Phishing involves tricking people into providing sensitive information like login credentials, passwords, PINs, card details, or ID numbers through deceptive techniques like fake emails and websites.
Smishing, on the other hand, uses text messages that appear to be from legitimate organizations to gather similar information.
Once the criminals obtain this information, they load the physical card details, such as the card number (PAN), expiry date, and Card Verification Value (CVV), into their own digital wallets.
Loading a debit or credit card onto a digital wallet, such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, or SwatchPay, is similar to making an online payment using these cards.
The losses suffered are in the millions of rands, with customers’ accounts fraudulently drained through tap-and-go purchases made with smart devices in mostly foreign jurisdictions such as Dubai, France, and Spain while the legitimate cardholders were in South Africa.
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