HSBC UK has issued a warning over “new tricks” being used by scammers to target Brits and drain bank accounts. The bank has spoken out to raise awareness, urging customers to take care and be vigilant amid a worrying rise of scams for bank account holders and customers.
The bank is warning against downloading dummy apps, also called ‘fake apps’, which trick people into downloading them onto their phones by clicking unsafe links, or not using their phone’s official app store. The fake mobile apps contain malware, which can block, redirect or impersonate legitimate apps including the HSBC Mobile Banking app.
David Callington, HSBC UK’s Head of Fraud, said: “Scammers are devious criminals who use every trick in the book to get hold of your hard-earned money, without any regard for your financial or mental wellbeing. Cybercriminals develop apps which encourage the user to share personal information, which can then be harvested and used for criminal purposes, potentially leading to your bank account being cleaned out.
“Our own teams are alive to dummy apps and report them when we come across them, getting them taken down, but criminals make new ones or change the names or designs. It is a constant battle. Customers can help protect themselves by being vigilant and cautious, which are the best defences against this, ensuring you only download apps from trusted sources and do what you can to verify the authenticity of the app before exposing your device.”
Reacting to the warning, a customer said: “I always delete emails if I don’t recognise the name of the sender – if it’s genuine they’ll try again or, in my case, people will telephone (just a quick call) to let me know it’s genuine before re-sending. Everyone’s been watching scammers on TV!!”
But Rob warned: “And still, despite all the warnings over the years, people will fall for it.” HSBC says people can protect themselves by not clicking on unexpected or suspicious-looking links, updating to the latest version of your phone’s operating system and keeping apps up to date.
