A 42-year-old man, resident of Gurgaon sector 60, was defrauded of ₹3.4 lakh in a credit card scam. He came across one fake advert of American Express credit card on Facebook. He applied for it. After this, one fraudster posing as bank representative called him and convinced him to download an application, reported The Times of India.
With this application, the hacker managd to get access to his phone gallery from where he could get details of two credit cards: Kotak Mahindra Bank’s card and ICICI Bank’s card. He lost ₹1.95 lakh from the first card and ₹1.49 lakh from the second.
Although a one-off case, it can happen to anyone. To avoid this kind of fraud from happening to you, it is recommended to take the following steps.
Take these 5 precautions to avoid being scammed
I. Adverts look suspicuous: Never click on adverts which look suspicuous and make tall promises such as free card and no charges etc. Remember that there are no free lunches.
II. Authenticity of URL: When you click any link, make sure to check the URL. The web link should belong to the bank and not to some unauthorised agent or agency.
III. No apps: Avoid downloading the app for filing out any form. Typically all banks and credit card companies have their own apps. It’s alright to download the app of a bank or NBFC, but not of some representative claiming to be from a bank.
IV. Access to gallery: At the time of downloading an app, make sure that you do not give permission to access your phone gallery or phone record.
V. Cross-verify information: Always make sure to cross-verify the information with that on the official website of bank. For instance, in the above case, it would have been better if the victim had cross verified information on the official website of American Express.
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