Knowing telltale signs first step to recognising a scam: BNZ
Scams are a serious issue affecting many in this country. Chances are you know someone who has been impacted by one as, to the year ended July, nine out of 10 New Zealanders have been targeted, according to BNZ research.
The number of New Zealanders who have fallen victim to a scam is much lower - one in ten – but scams are on the rise because New Zealanders keep falling for them.
A figure released at the start of International Fraud Awareness Week in November shows that $198 million of Kiwis’ money was taken out of their bank accounts from scams, up from $183 million last year.
The problem, according to Ashley Kai-Fong, Head of Financial Crime at BNZ, is we live our lives online, and that means we are vulnerable every day to an online scam. Whether it’s communicating with friends and family, doing shopping, applying for jobs, or running our businesses, it’s crucial to take steps to keep information and money secure online.
Reducing the risk of being scammed doesn’t need to be complicated or expensive, he says, but it does require some awareness and education.
Awareness of how to be Scam Savvy can help keep you, your money, and your data safer and more secure. Knowing the signs of a scam is the first step.
There are a number of ways to spot scams,” says Kai-Fong. “If something comes out of the blue and there’s a sense of urgency with it, that should be your first red flag. Then if they’re asking you to do something you wouldn’t ordinarily do, that’s another sign of a potential scam.”
The BNZ research showed the top three scams in the year to July were government impersonation scams, bank impersonation scams, and fake lottery, prize, or grant scams.
In a bank impersonation scam, for example, the scammers might ask you for details that the bank would never ask you for, like your PIN, your password, or to download remote access software. When you download remote access software, it allows someone to access your device and everything on it. That means access to your emails, your photographs, your saved passwords, address, everything.
Once the software is on your device, the scammer will ask you to log on to your banking; once you’ve done that, they’ll have access to your bank accounts.
Email is the most common channel, with 40 per cent of scams arriving in our email inboxes, followed by text (34 per cent), and social media (28 per cent). There are even scams purporting to catch other scammers, by asking you to use your personal money to catch a supposed fraudster.
“Many of these scams try to play on people’s civic duty. So the scammer will ask you if you can help catch a hacker, for example. They’ll say you can’t tell anyone from the bank, because it could be a bank employee, and you need to transfer your money to help catch them. It’s important to know that banks and police will never, ever ask anyone to do that. We will never ask you to use your money to catch a hacker or scammer,” Kai-Fong says.
When you receive an email, text, or message, the first thing to do is just take a moment…pause. Don’t feel pressure to respond immediately and don’t click on links until able to confirm they are legitimate. If you’re unsure, go to the company or government website directly rather than via a link in an email.
Scammers will often pose as someone you know, by hacking into their email or social media accounts and messaging their contacts. It might appear as though you’re talking to an old high school friend who is stuck in Singapore and needs some money to get home, or get a hotel for the night, but again - pause. Don’t transfer money if it seems even a little bit suspicious.
You could also receive a message from a friend saying they got a strange message from you and they think you’ve been hacked. If you think you’ve been hacked, it’s a good opportunity to revisit all your preventative security measures, such as changing your passwords, making your social media private, updating your apps, and using two factor authentication.
If you’ve lost money, the first thing to do is contact your bank immediately. “Speed is always of the essence,” says Kai-Fong. “The sooner we know about it, the sooner we can start the recovery process.”
Reaching out to those around you is also important when you’re the victim of a scam, as much for your own mental health as for financial recovery. “People feel a lot of embarrassment when they’ve been scammed,” says Kai-Fong. “They can’t believe that they’ve been duped.
“So what we want to do is take out the embarrassment factor. We want people to start talking about it. Start to learn about how these scams are prepared, perpetrated, and how to spot the signs.”
He says it’s important not to suffer in silence. “Reach out. Talk to your loved ones. Talk to your bank. Talk to the police. Talk about the situations where you think that you are either being scammed or have been scammed.”
For more information: getscamsavvy.co.nz
This information is provided for general purposes only and is not financial or other professional advice. It’s not intended to be a complete summary of how scams operate. If in doubt, contact BNZ or another trusted adviser. No representation or warranty is made as to the accuracy, reliability or completeness of any information. No party, including BNZ, is liable for any loss or damage resulting from the content of this article.