BNZ says no losses so far in phishing scam

Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) says early signs show no customers have been left out of pocket by the latest internet "phishing" scam.

The bank was forced to suspend internet banking yesterday after it became aware of a fraudulent email circulating to customers.

The email opened a page that was an exact replica of the BNZ's internet banking site. It had the bank's logo and used the same layout as the BNZ site.

The message prompted customers to log in to the fake website -- giving scamsters login and password details allowing them access to the victims' bank accounts.

Peter Fletcher, BNZ's chief information officer, said the email had reached thousands of customers and some had disclosed their personal details, but so far no-one appeared to have been hit financially.

"We have done significant scanning and review of payments created in the period between the time that the email was received around 1pm and 2.45pm when we shut off access," Mr Fletcher said.

"At the moment we don't see anything unusual around the payments that have been made. To the best of our understanding nobody has suffered any loss."

Banks have repeatedly warned people not to input any security data anywhere online, except on a bank's official website. Banks do not send out emails asking for personal details.

Thousands of people around the world have been caught in these sophisticated phishing scams, which have been a problem for a couple of years. Several New Zealand banks have been hit since 2003.

"The issue is not about internet banking, it is about people's identity. That is what is being stolen," Mr Fletcher said.

"Attempts to steal people's electronic identity are a bit of a fact of life these days."

The BNZ website was up and running again by 9pm, Mr Fletcher said.

Customers have been advised to delete the email without opening it, under no circumstances follow the links to the website, and not to provide confidential information such as access codes or PIN numbers.

Those who had concerns about their BNZ accounts or suspected they had responded to a fraudulent email should call the bank's customer solutions advisers on 0800 275 269.

- NZPA