You receive a call on your phone.
The caller says they're from your bank and they're calling about a suspected fraud.
"Oh yeah," you think. Obvious scam, right?
The caller says "I'll send you an in-app notification to prove I'm calling from your bank."
Your phone buzzes. You tap the notification This is what you see.
Still think it is a scam?
1/3
The scammer is on the phone to you.
Their accomplice is on the phone to your bank, pretending to be you.
Your bank send you the notification.
You accept, and scammers proceed to drain your account.
Someone has just lost £18,000 because of this.
https://www.reddit.com/r/UKPersonalFinance/comments/1cih3kd/been_scammed_over_18000_through_my_chase_account/
2/3
It *is* a genuine notification. But it isn't confirming the bank is calling you.
Should the bank word that differently?
In a rush, would you read it thoroughly?
Most likely, in a panic about the fraud, you'd confirm it was a genuine notification (it is!) and accept it.
3/3
Well if it was my bank calling I'd be suing them for disability discrimination for phoning me (deaf). I've already tried the Financial Ombudsman on NatWest over deafness and phone issues.
I've told my mum that even if she thinks the bank caller to her is legit. Hang up. Wait 10 mins. Look up the bank's number on a statement she has and use a different phoneline to initiate her own call.
Thanks for sharing how this scam works. I hadn't thought of the dual prong approach. Evil scammers
Terence Eden
NatalyaD