Money Transfer Scam: Things You Need to Know

Online payments have brought a lot of convenience. With the rise in digital payments, scammers have also devised multiple methods of making individuals do fake transfer money transactions into their accounts.

Money transfer scams happen when scammers manipulate individuals into making payments into their accounts on the pretext of fake promises, impersonation, etc. Over the last few years, fraudsters have devised multiple ways to trick people into making online transfers. This article will teach you about common ways these scams occur and how to save your interest.

Ways used by scammers for conducting money transfer scams

Scammers are getting creative with the way they dupe individuals. Over recent years, there have been multiple complaints of varying types who have been tricked into making transfers. You might have also heard 1-2 stories of such incidents already. Yes, it is that common!

Yet, scammers use some standard techniques to conduct such fraudulent activities. You need to know the following common ways they operate with -

• Impersonation - Scammers are well aware that someone will usually not think twice when their loved ones are in urgent need of money. Fraudsters can use your emotionally driven decisions against your interest. If you ever receive any communication from your loved ones where they need money as soon as possible, please verify the authenticity of this communication.
  Scammers usually make calls or texts, referring to any accident or health emergency where your loved ones need money for urgent treatment. Making a payment directly out of worry without verifying the legitimacy of communication can cause a loss.
• E-Commerce - Special discount offers can be lucrative for anyone. You must apply conscious decision-making instead of greed. Scammers post various fake advertisements, promising expensive goods at rock-bottom prices. Making any payment against them without checking the authenticity of communication can make you a fraud victim.
• Customer support - Looking for customer support via online means is a common practice. However, it would be best to use utmost caution while looking for such details. Often, scammers create fake websites, chat support and contact numbers to trick individuals into customer support for any particular business. Once you contact such fake customer support services, they will request your data to ‘verify’ your profile. Thus, obtaining all your sensitive information in the process. Scammers often also ask to make some processing fee payment to their account to help with your issue.
• Lottery or jackpot - The possibility of any windfall gain usually makes people conduct financially irresponsible behavior. Scammers use this to their advantage by contacting their targeted victims. Once a contact has been established, the victim is notified of successfully winning a lottery or a jackpot. The victim is asked to make some advance tax or transaction processing payment to claim such a win amount. Once the amount is received, scammers can very well disappear without a trace!
• Lucrative investments - Advertisements or communication claiming a higher return on assets are also used to trick individuals. Scammers know that you might invest money without proper research on the pretext of assured high returns. Once the investment amount is received, fraudsters will get unreachable, and the hard-earned money is gone.

Tips for safeguarding your interest against such scams

Scams related to digital payments are indeed on the rise. However, you can save yourself from becoming prey to such scams if you are cautious. The regulators are always on the move to curb scams, but it is also your responsibility to help stop them. The following are some easy tips you can follow -

• Identity verification - On receiving any urgent request for payment from your dear ones, it is crucial to verify that it is genuinely them asking for it. You can always try for a video call or cross-verification of facts via someone else.
  It can also be helpful to create a codeword between your family, which can be used by one another while requesting funds urgently. Such measures will help you ensure that the funds are transferred where you intend them to and not to any scammer impersonating your family member.
• Official sources - To get in touch with any corporate or government institution, please make sure to use their official sources. Any contact information obtained via a third-party source can be fake, leading to potential fraud. You can always check for official communication channels on the product’s packaging or via their official social media accounts that the platform has verified.
• Be Skeptical - On receiving any promotional, investment, or redemption offer that is too good to be true. It is always prudent to be unsure about them and conduct research to verify such a communication before taking things further. Please don't share your details or your sensitive banking information with anyone. Your bank or any business can never ask you for your pin, password or OTP.
• Constant track - It is always best to keep a continuous path of your financial statements for any unauthorized entry. If you ever encounter any transaction you believe wasn’t made by you, immediately inform your bank and change your password/pin.
• Be alert - Staying alert and aware of scams and measures to protect them is essential. With scammers evolving daily, you must also update yourself on how such scams are conducted. You can use HDFC Bank Vigil Aunty to stay ahead of scammers. Vigil Aunty not only helps you educate about new scams but also on how you can prevent yourself from them.

To make all your future payments it might be a good idea to use HDFC Bank Money Transfer, which provides its customers with a wide variety of payment products to cover all kinds of needs.

Did you know about these common loan frauds? Read more. - What is payment fraud? | What is online banking fraud? | What is insurance fraud?

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