Fraudster Alert!

In the midst of technical advancement and economic sophistication, stems a common phenomenon of financial crimes. These crimes are a form of theft or larceny that occurb when a person or entity takes money or property, or uses them in an illicit manner, with theb intent to gain a benefit from it.

Financial fraud is typically when someone deprives you of your money or otherwise harms your financial health through misleading, deceptive, or other unlawful practices.

It usually comes in the form of deceit, subterfuge or the abuse of a position of trust, which distinguishes them from usual theft or robbery.

Please feel free to send in your personal experience or similar stories to us to share learnings to help protect our fellow countrymen from falling victim to such incidences.

This story, which was earlier printed in our dailies, sheds light on the importance of safeguarding your personal information and knowing your financial transactions.

Mr. White, a former Fiji resident, claimed that $20,000 was withdrawn from his account by an unknown man, without his knowledge.

Mr. White claimed that the unknown man, named Mr Grey, presented a letter to his bank on his behalf while he was abroad. In the letter, Grey wrote that the account holder, Mr. White, had given Grey the authority to withdraw the said amount.

The letter further stated that Mr. White has taken a personal loan of $20,000 and wishes to use his withdrawn funds as the repayment for that loan.

Mr. White, who is a businessman, was alarmed to see the transaction when he checked his account through internet banking.

The funds were withdrawn from two locations; $15,000 from Lautoka and $5,000 from Ba.

What was more intriguing is that Grey had copies of Mr. White’s driver’s license, TIN card and other official documents and claimed that it was original, when the originals were actually with Mr. White, the rightful owner.

The bank staff did not seek any confirmation from Mr. White prior to releasing the funds.

The lesson to learn from this is that:

■One should not entrust the third party with any sorts of personal information.

Do not disclose your financial stance, personal biodata or statutory IDs to anyone unless absolutely needed.

■Always ensure that the official documents and identification cards are safely stored to avoid it being used by unintended persons. Your ATM card pin is the same as your signature - protect it at all costs.

■You have every right to claim compensation from the bank and typically any negligence by banks are always honoured.

Given laws protecting consumers andn reputational risk faced by banks in such cases.

■The other key advice is that we all must have a habit of keeping all receipts and statements.

These are useful in keeping track of our spending and helps us reconcile our expenses should we tend to notice any inconsistencies. It also allows for insurance or incorrect billings etcetera.

■Then we must always form a habit of going through our bank statements.

Check all deposits and withdrawals to ensure that its origins are known to us.

Any unfamiliar debits or credits will therefore be a warning signal to us. It will help us identify any fraudulent activity on our bank accounts.

■Checking the financial transactions on our bank statement also helps us see how we faring with our savings behaviour.

Knowing your deposits are also crucial so that we are not tempted to use any incorrect credits into our accounts as that will eventually need to be repaid or otherwise risk being prosecuted for dishonest practices.

In this story, the financial fraud would have gone unnoticed had Mr. White not checked his financial transaction or if he did not track his spending behaviour. It was because Mr. White was very conscious of his every financial transaction, he was able to quickly detect the fraudulent activity on his account.

Hence, the need to check your bank account habitually.

Have you ever wondered why your bank sends you a regular account statement anyway?

If you notice any transaction on your accounts that are unfamiliar or suspicious, contact your bank immediately.

The festive season is upon us and so will be the temptation for spending more and defrauding others. Be safe.

Fraud and financial crimes can take many forms. As such I am hoping to share this fraud story to emphasise lessons learnt and precautionary measures that can be taken.