Scams are prevalent the world over and in South Africa (SA) it’s no different. Especially now with the rise of technology, it’s becoming a playground for a fraudster to target South African internet users with multiple scams and here are five of them.
Bank fraud
One of the most prevalent types of frauds, whether if your card is retained by an ATM. Lost or stolen or if you receive an OTP on your phone without having transacted yourself. It may likely being prompted by a fraudster using your personal information.
Should you fall victim and you’ve paid money to a fraudster, or suffered any of the above contact your bank immediately. They can assist by either stopping any payments or blocking your cards.
Fake job scam
With a high unemployment rate in the country people should be vigilant of people who claim to be employers and then seek money from you to secure a job. Or want to acquire your ID number, curriculum vitae, bank account and credit card information.
If victims believe that they’ve encountered a website designed to look legitimate so to steal personal information, they can report the matter to the Internet Service Providers Association in SA.
Inheritance fraud
If you’ve ever been messaged that you can claim a large inheritance, it may be a scam, criminals posing as lawyers. They instruct that an advance payment be made to facilitate the release of the inherited funds.
They also collect personal information from their victims in order to perpetrate other financial crimes. In such instances victims then face financial loss and identity theft.
Online Gaming Fraud
Virtual, online role-playing games allow participants to connect and play with others across the world. To secure a competitive advantage at these roleplaying games, players need to purchase virtual items for their online gaming characters.
Criminals take advantage by setting up websites as shop fronts to gamers looking to purchase in-game currency with real-world cash. The activities are also used to fund other illegal cybercrime activities.
WhatsApp scam
The popular messaging service in SA has also made it a popular platform for fraudsters.
A popular scam at the moment is the message that offers a discount or competition with a link, meant for sending on to your contacts to get shared. But clicking on it will install malware onto your device that can access your personal and banking details.
You can officially report this scam to Scam Buster.
