Identity theft, a term only in use a few years, is much more widespread than any of us would like to think. It occurs when a criminal transfers or uses a person’s identity illegally, generally in order to gain access to the victim’s finances, or to use their identity to set up a bogus bank account. Even worse are the criminals involved in organised crime, who aim to use your identity and money for illegal activities such as drug and people trafficking. John Lowe of MoneyDoctors.ie investigates.
We have come a long way in the last few years technology wise. As we all know, the internet can be both a blessing and a curse; and while many of the scams floating around these days manage to succeed due to the online and social media, internet access also means that such identity fraud is a lot more publicised and people are becoming educated on the risks as a result. The most common forms of fraud to watch out for in Ireland today are:
- Phishing: Perhaps the most widespread and convincing of all, this scam takes place via email and often involves receipt of a mail that appears to be from a reputable business, perhaps one with which you already engage; however, clicking any link within the email results in damaging software, or malware, being downloaded to your computer.
Another form of phishing involves the victim being told they have won a prize and convinced to supply their bank details to the scammer in order to collect it; or that they have been contacted by a rich foreign diplomat or prince who needs help moving some money around and just needs a friendly bank account in which to rest his funds for a while – a service for which he’ll pay you handsomely…
Safeguard:
The general rule to avoid falling victim to phishing is not to trust emails that appear to be from a bank; and to never click a link within a suspicious email. - Card fraud: Stolen or copied credit/debit cards, or their details, are used to withdraw cash or to make purchases online. Your card details can be harvested through “skimming”, a process whereby a device fitted to an ATM copies the details of your card as you insert it.
Safeguard:
Do not use any ATM that looks suspicious or as though it has been tampered with. - Invoice redirection fraud: Criminals contact a business pretending to be, e.g., a supplier with whom that business already works, providing alternate payment details so that the funds for any future purchases from that supplier are paid to the scammer.
Safeguard:
Should this happen, always end the call and phone back your supplier directly. - CEO fraud: Junior finance employees are contacted by someone purporting to be a senior member of staff at their company, requesting that a work-related payment be made urgently – to the scammer’s account.
Safeguard:
Use your common sense: first, check that the email address is definitely an internal company address. If you are suspicious, speak to a trusted member of staff directly. - Phone fraud: Another particularly common scam, this occurs when a person receives a phonecall or text from someone purporting to be, e.g., a bank or service provider. The scammer will often ask for ID details, like passwords and account numbers.
Safeguard:
Never, ever give out your password or bank details on a call like this. - Advance fee fraud: This occurs when people are convinced to pay upfront for a product or service that does not exist, such as a rental down payment for a property they have not seen in person.
Safeguard:
Try to be wise: if something seems too good to be true, trust that it probably is; and if you have never seen something, don’t throw your money at it. - Romance fraud: Often linked to “catfishing” – where a person is led to believe that they are talking to someone online, when that online friend does not in fact exist – romance fraud occurs when someone believes they are in a romantic relationship with a person they have met online, only to be asked to pay for the person to visit them, or to help the person out in some financial way.
Safeguard:
Be careful about who you speak to, and never send money to a person you have never met.
It’s not just nameless, faceless, online entities, either; as of August this year, 171 suspected cases of fraud had been detected in registrations for the public services card, with duplicate applications being made to the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.