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Internet and Electronic Banking Safety

16.4.2024
Beware of fraudulent applications. Read more…
31.1.2024
Beware of fraudulent applications. Read more…
8.11.2023
Beware of the SIM Swap scam. Read more…
19.6.2023
Scam phone calls. Read more…
24.4.2023
What to do if you receive a notification that your domain has been blocked. Read more…
20.3.2023
Fraudulent email. Read more…
3.10.2022
Beware of fraudulent SMS/emails abusing the name of shipping companies. Read more...
6.9.2022
Never forward acquisition SMS for Smart Banking. Read more...
25.8.2022
Beware of bogus phone calls. Read more...
19.4.2022
Beware of fraudsters when selling goods through an advertising platform, as well as of fraudulent phone calls prompting you to install an app. Read more...

 

 

The most common tricks of scammers

If you have a credit/debit card, be careful when using it. Even you can become a target of the scammers.

 

The credit/debit cards are often a target of the scammers who try to obtain necessary data and then misuse it for fraudulent transactions or ATM withdrawals.

When the scammer is trying to obtain credit/debit card details, they do not introduce themselves by the specific bank name and therefore these attacks are much more universal than attacks targeting the Internet or mobile banking.

 

What are the most common types of scams, how to identify them and how to prevent them?

  • Your card has been blocked
    The user receives an e-mail or a text message informing him/her that his/her card has been blocked for various reasons and to unblock it the user has to click on the link and enter the card details to verify or to send these details back in the reply.
    Such messages are always fraudulent, banks do not verify clients in a similar way, and if the card is actually blocked for security reasons, it is not possible to unblock the card in this way.
    Under no circumstances enter or send card number or other information based on similar messages. If you receive a similar message, contact the bank's Infoline or your banker to check the situation.
  • Your card has been misused and needs to be blocked
    As in the previous case, the scammer informs the user that his/her card has been misused and must be blocked. This information is often reported by a phone and the scammer requests, under the pretext of user authentication, the full credit/debit card number and other details such as card validity, CVV/CVC code, PIN code or one-time authorization code.
    If the bank blocks the card for security reasons, it never asks the user for the full card number, CVV/CVC code or one-time codes for transactions.
    Under no circumstances provide the entire credit/debit card number, CVC/CVV code, PIN code or one-time transaction codes based on a similar call. If you receive a similar call, contact the bank's Infoline or your banker to check the situation.
  • Apple Pay and Google Pay
    With the launch of Apple Pay and Google Pay, scams using their name began to appear.
    The user receives an e-mail or a text message informing him/her that their Apple Pay or Google Pay account has been blocked and should click on the attached link to unblock it. After clicking, the user is redirected to a website where he/she has to enter their credit/debit card information. However, this message and the website are fake and have nothing to do with these services.
    The user always manages credit/debit cards in connection with Apple Pay and Google Pay directly in the Apple Pay or Google Pay application.
    If you receive a similar message, check it in Apple Pay/Google Pay application and check the situation in your account settings. Do not use the links provided in the fraudulent message to open the application.
    Do not enter your credit/debit card information or PIN on suspicious websites based on similar messages.
  • Undelivered shipment
    The user receives an e-mail or a text message that the shipping service could not deliver the package due to unpaid transport or customs duties. The apparent arrears are usually small – a few euros. The message also contains a link to the payment gateway, where the user has to enter the details of the credit/debit card and pay the arrears so that the shipment can be delivered to him/her. However, both the message and the payment gateway are fake.
    Shipping companies usually do not send similar e-mails. Neither the sender's e-mail address nor the payment gateway's web address belongs to real companies in the event of fraud, but they often try to imitate the real address.
    If you receive a similar message and you are unsure of its authenticity, contact the shipping company directly to verify the information. Also, make sure that the email sender's address matches the actual shipping company address. Do not enter your credit/debit card information based on similar messages.
  • A loan for a friend
    The user is contacted via Facebook or Messenger by their friend with a request for a small loan, usually a few euros. If the user agrees, the friend will send him a link to the payment gateway, where he/she has to fill in the credit/debit card details and send the transaction. However, the friend's profile is fake and so is the payment gateway. If the user enters credit/debit card details here, the scammer will immediately use them to transfer a higher transaction. When confirming this transaction, the user may not notice that he/she authorizes a much higher amount than the agreed few euros.
    Friends' loan requests via Facebook or Messenger are in most cases fraudulent. The friend's profile and the payment gateway used are fake, the payment gateway address does not belong to any existing company, but it is often similar to the actual address.
    If you receive a similar request, contact a friend by phone and verify the authenticity of the request with him/her. Also, make sure that the payment gateway address is correct and that the website is secure.
  • Cheap goods in e-shops
    The store offers goods for a fraction of their actual price and entices the user to bargains. Reviews of satisfied users who praise the quality of goods and speed of delivery are often listed directly on the website. However, these reviews are fake and the store fraudulent, not only does the user not receive the purchased goods, but often the credit/debit card details of which were provided by the user when paying for the goods can be misused.
    By law, the seller's identification and contact details and terms and conditions must be provided at the store's website. Secure stores use encrypted communication to sign in or pay – at the beginning of the address is https.
    If you come across similar store, check to see if it is run by an existing company. Find reviews of this store online (but don't believe the reviews listed directly on the store's website) and check the website's security. If the store is suspicious, don't shop there.
  • Online bazaars scammers
    You will recognize the scammers on the online bazaars by the way they communicate, most often they will contact you via an e-mail or a chat applications such as Messenger, WhatsApp or Viber. It is mostly an urgent communication. The scammer will want to send a courier to pick up the goods. The scammer will then send you a link with the payment gateway and will ask you to enter your credit/debit card details to send the funds for the goods directly to the credit/debit card. In reality, however, multiple scenarios may occur. For example: 
  • The scammer adds the credit/debit card to Apple Pay/Google Pay, requests a code to confirm, which you will receive via a text message. The scammer will then make the payment, without any further confirmation.
  • The scammer will pay online, for which the scammer will ask for your confirmation, which you will receive as a push notification in your application.
  • Always read the message you are confirming and never confirm a transaction you do not know. Also, never share your Apple Pay/Google Pay activation code with anyone.
  • Microsoft support
    The user is called by a fraudster who pretends to be a Microsoft employee. He or she calls about a problem with your computer and requests that you install a fraudulent app, allow remote access to your computer, or pay a technical support fee. The fraudster usually calls from foreign numbers and the call is in English.
    Do not share your payment card information, install unknown apps, or allow remote access to your computer, Internet banking, or your data based on similar calls.

 

Helpful hints:

  • The bank does not send their users information about blocking the credit/debit card via e-mail/text message with the option to unblock it via the attached link. Do not respond to such messages.
  • Always check carefully the messages requesting  your credit/debit card information. Focus on the sender's email address, the link address. If you are unsure, contact the alleged sender by phone – look for contacts on the Internet, do not use those listed in the suspicious message.
  • Check the security of the website – lock and https: in the address bar. The lock provides information about the certificate of the site, https is a protocol providing encrypted communication. Never enter information on a website that uses the http: protocol.
  • The credit/debit card number is in most systems in the format 1234-56XX-XXXX-1234, while the 6 middle digits are masked. Never share these numbers with others via e-mail, text message or phone call.
  • PIN code is only used to identify the user at the ATM or to confirm terminal transactions. However, in no case does it serve to identify the user when communicating with the bank, so never report or send it to anyone.
  • Always read the text of the received text messages carefully, and if it is meaningless or does not correspond to the activity you are performing, be careful.
  • Have the credit/debit card limits set correctly, both for the payments via the Internet or at merchants, as well as for the ATM withdrawals. If necessary, it is always possible to temporarily increase these limits.
  • Pay attention to grammar and typos. Although phishing messages today are at a higher level than in the past, they often still contain typos and errors that can warn the attentive user.
  • If you are unsure, contact the bank's Infoline +420 221 210 031 or your banker and ask them to verify the messages received.

Companies: Fake Invoices and CEO Fraud

Beware of fraudulent e-mails sent to companies with the aim of inspiring trust and attempting to relieve the corporate accounts of money.

Fake Invoices and CEO Fraud are types of fraudulent conduct which more and more companies have come across recently. The fraudsters are trying to imitate communication with the company’s manager or supplier and subsequently to trick employees to send money from corporate accounts.

 

 

How does it work?

  • Fake Invoices
    The fraudster may send an invoice to the company giving the impression it was sent by the company’s supplier. In the majority of cases, the fraudster uses an e-mail address that only looks similar to the actual supplier's e-mail address, however, there are also cases when an e-mail is sent from a genuine e-mail address. The fraudster could trace the link between companies on the Internet but the e-mail box of one of the companies might also be compromised and the existing communication monitored.
    In such case, the invoice itself can appear very plausible, differing only in the supplier’s account number. Frequently, the victim notices such a change, however, and asks for confirmation via a message to the fake e-mail address- the fraudster approves such a change on behalf of the supplier and the victim goes on to send the money.
  • CEO Fraud
    This type of attack focuses on employees managing corporate accounts. The fraudster often searches the corporate structure for individual employees on the company’s website or professional social networks, subsequently contacting particular employees on behalf of the company’s manager with an urgent request to transfer money from the corporate account. In a majority of cases, the fraudster uses an e-mail address that only looks similar to the actual manager's e-mail address, however, we have also registered cases when a genuine e-mail address had been hacked. The message may look credible, in particular in cases when such a method of communication and transmission of payment orders is common. Unless the employee verifies the order with the actual manager, they might send the money to the fraudster, mostly to a foreign account.

 

How can you defend yourself against such attacks?

We recommend always verifying any payment orders and invoices with non-standard data received by e-mail directly with the sender in person or by phone.

Please pay attention to the sender’s e-mail address and check if it is real. E-mails from us can come to you both from the domain unicreditbank.cz and from the domain unicreditgroup.cz.

You should also notice any changes in the formatting of e-mails or invoices compared to standard communication (a different font, logo, grammatical mistakes, briefness or austerity); in many cases, companies have registered such features in fraudulent e-mails.

If you suspect that you might have been a victim of an attack, please inform your banker or the Bank’s Customer Centre +420 221 210 031.

 

CEO fraud - example

Fraudulent Calls Alert

We have received an increased number of reports of fraudulent phone calls concerning pending loan applications.

 

In recent days, we have seen an increase in attempts at fraud. The fraudsters call on behalf of UniCredit Bank (or other Czech banks) and inform about alleged pending loan applications. Under various pretexts and threats, they then request personal and security data or the installation of an unknown app. The fraudsters use various phone numbers and in several cases they speak Russian or with a Russian accent. If you experience a similar phone call, we recommend that you do not share any information with the caller and never install unknown apps on your phone or computer. If you are unsure of the authenticity of an incoming call, please contact the UniCredit Bank Customer Centre at +420 221 210 031.

 

Android: Accessibility authorisation

Do you use Accessibility for apps requiring authorisation? Please make sure you trust these apps.

 

 

What purpose does this authorisation serve?

Accessibility authorisation is intended primarily for persons with visual and hearing impairment, speech disorders or physical disabilities in order to simplify their work with the phone and with some apps.

For example, authorisation enables the font size to be changed in some apps, the phone to be controlled by voice or the keyboard layout to be adjusted, as well as the reading out of text displayed on the phone screen.

 

What is risky about this authorisation?

Applications with Accessibility authorisation enabled can read (as well as record) the displayed text and thereby get access to the information viewed by the user, such as text messages and conversations, phone numbers and contacts. In the context of banking apps, this may include sensitive data such as names, account numbers, transactions or balances.

 

Where to check which apps use Accessibility authorisation and how to disable it?

You can find a list of apps in the menu Settings - Accessibility - Services. You can also switch authorisation for individual apps on or off in this menu.

 

How do I recognise if an app is misusing my authorisation?

You should consider what the app is for and if the use of such authorisation makes sense. The app’s developer should be able to explain what the app uses the authorisation for - such an explanation may be displayed directly in the app, available on the app page in Google Play or on the website of the company providing the app.

 

Rules of safe behavior on the Internet

  • Observe the principles of safe behaviour on the Internet and in online banking.

  • Minimise the risk of viruses or other malware infecting your computers and mobile devices.

  • Maximize the protection of your data and funds.

How to do it
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