Beware! Cybercriminals have upped their game by joining forces and utilizing advanced technology to steal money through a multi-pronged wire transfer approach using a team of hackers and scammers.
Recent attacks have occurred like this:
- An unsuspecting account holder receives a call from what appears to be his/her financial center’s fraud department to verify a suspicious transaction, and the phone number appears legitimate.
- The scammer “verifies” the account holder’s information by asking him/her answers to security questions, and then texts a “secure” link to the account holder to “securely” log in.
- While still on the phone, the account holder logs in and sees what appears to be suspicious account transactions.
- The account holder is asked to send the remaining money in their account to a separate, “safe” account via wire transfer.
- While the account holder is on the phone with the hacker, a second scammer impersonates the member while on the phone with the actual financial institution and authorizes a true wire transfer from the account holder’s account to the fraudulent account.
If you receive a call like this, HANG UP! Call your financial service provider directly from a number you know to be valid, explain the situation, and ask for help in determining whether or not your account is at risk.