The Traunstein Criminal Investigation Department's cybercrime commissioner is currently investigating 13 cases in which victims from the region suffered a total of around 100,000 euros in damages. The criminal police explain how the still relatively unknown fraud scheme works and how you can protect yourself so as not to become a victim of the fraudsters yourself.

Investigations into 13 cases are currently underway at the Cybercrime Commissariat of the Traunstein Criminal Police Department. In all cases, the victims, men and women of all ages from the Traunstein, Berchtesgadener Land and Altötting districts, were deprived of significant amounts of money. The financial loss known to date amounts to a total of around 100,000 euros. The criminal police explain below how the fraudsters operate and how users of digital payment methods can protect themselves from them.  

How does this scam work?

You can pay quickly and easily with your smartphone or smartwatch using a digital bank card. For this purpose, the physical credit or debit card is digitally displayed on the mobile device. It is then possible to pay with this digital image.

Criminals have developed a strategy to clone other people's bank cards and use them to make payments.

  • The perpetrators access the sensitive bank details of those affected phishing site
  • In order for fraudsters to be able to use the digital credit card, it still needs to be activated. To do this, the criminals contact the affected consumers by telephone the next day and pose as bank employees.
  • During the conversation, the victim is asked to confirm a push TAN that they receive during the conversation.
  • Once confirmed, the fraudsters immediately gain access to the bank card and can then use it with their own smartphone or smartwatch.
  • The payment process can now be completed without having to have the physical card or PIN.

Phishing is a form of identity theft in which criminals attempt to collect personal and financial information from Internet users through the use of fake emails, websites or text messages. The attackers pose as trustworthy organizations, companies or government agencies in order to trick users into voluntarily providing them with confidential information.

A typical example of phishing is an email that appears to come from a bank or other financial institution and asks users to click on a link that leads to a fake website. This website asks users to enter their login credentials and other sensitive information, which can then be used by the criminals to access bank accounts or other online accounts.

It is important to note that phishing attacks can be very sophisticated and are often extremely convincing. To protect yourself from phishing attacks, it's important to pay close attention to signs of fake emails or websites, not to click on links in unsafe emails, and not to share sensitive information with strangers.

How does the digital credit card work?

In order to use a digital debit or credit card, the smartphone or smartwatch must be NFC capable. The latest operating system of the mobile device should be used. Some banks offer special pay apps for digital payment processes. Among others, the savings banks with “mobile payment” and the Volksbanks with “Pay App”.

On the Android operating system, the payment function is called Google Pay and on Apple devices Apple Pay . The bank card to be used digitally is added either directly or via an online banking app or the online banking website. Most banks will then provide official confirmation that the digital card has been set up. For this purpose, a TAN entry is usually necessary. The payment must then be initiated at the checkout and approved using a smartphone PIN, fingerprint or Face ID. Neither the physical card nor the PIN associated with the card is required to pay with the digital credit card.

How can consumers protect themselves from fraud?

It is advisable to be generally careful when banking online. We can also give the following tips:

  • Only access the online banking website directly via the official web address and not via a search engine    
  • Do not click on links in emails that supposedly come from the bank
  • Never give out sensitive information over the phone
  • Real bank employees never demand the disclosure of sensitive data via telephone, email, chat or website  
  • Check which devices and bank cards are stored in online banking for the account
  • If in doubt, always contact the bank's official customer support

If fraud or an unauthorized debit is noticed, those affected should immediately and then report it to the police.

Source: Upper Bavaria South Police Headquarters


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