Fraudulent Activities – A Rising Phenomena

■ Shoran Devi is the manager balance sheet and market risk for the HFC Bank

Today, I will endeavour to bring to your attention another recent occurrence relating to unauthorised withdrawal from a customer’s account.

The facts presented below had previously been highlighted through prior press releases by the Consumer Council of Fiji.

This story seeks to reiterate the message we tried to share in our previous publication. The story although worthy of all empathy, reflects on the very judgement we all at times fail to exercise; common sense!

Mr White, who is not so well versed with the complexities of modern day trading, occasionally relies on third parties for assistance. He recently went shopping at a local supermarket.

He used the EFTPOS machine to pay for his purchase and withdrew an additional $200 for later use.

After these transactions, he thought he’d better check his remaining balance, but did not know how to go about doing that.

The supermarket had ATMs nearby so Mr White sought help from one of the counter assistants named Mr Grey.

Mr Grey worked for the supermarket assisting the cashiers pack groceries.

Mr White handed over his card and PIN details to Mr Grey and asked if he could check his remaining balance.

Mr Grey checked the balance and informed Mr White that he had $597.80 remaining in his account.

Mr White thanked Mr Grey and walked away without realising that he did not take his card back from Mr Grey.

A while later, when Mr White remembered about his card, he returned to the supermarket only to be told that the card was not there. He then checked his balance with the bank and was informed that there was a withdrawal of $590 and that his remaining balance now was only $7.80.

Dismayed by the information, Mr White later lodged a complaint with the supermarket, the police and the relevant authorities.

The teachings of the story being:

■PINS and Passwords are your access codes. The moment you share this with someone else, it allows the third party an access to your private details.

Protect it all cost.

■Never hand over your bank card with the PIN number to anyone.

If you are paying for any purchase with your bank cards, do not ask for assistance from anyone to enter your PIN number. Do it yourself.

■If you may have difficulty using the ATMs or are unable to transact using cards, please do not ask for assistance from people you may not know.

Seek help only from your trustworthy loved ones.

You may also opt for cash transactions to avoid such mishaps.

■Whe■ using ATMs or EFTPOS machines, always ensure that no one sees your PIN number when you are entering it on the machines.

■Do not write your PIN number on the back of your bank card.

People often tend to do this if they feel they have the tendency to forget.

If you think you might forget, find a better place to store your PIN numbers, but do not keep it in the same place as your card.

■I■form your bank as soon as you misplace or lose your card.

■Try changing your PIN numbers occasionally. This will help mitigate the risks of unauthorised access to your account.

■A●ways check your bank statement thoroughly and look out for any unfamiliar transactions.

Keep in regular contact with your bank so that you can be easily contacted in case of any irregularity.

With the temptations all around us, we are being drawn to the urge of spending and in the process many of us may fall victim to our own laxities.

So let’s be vigilant and avoid being caught in situations as such.

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