Gardai, in conjunction with Bank of Ireland, have alerted the public to a ‘smishing’ scam whereby persons are being contacted by a text message, which appears to have come their bank, leading them to believe their bank card has been compromised.
A number of reports have been received by Gardaí in relation to this scam.
The details of this fraudulent message is inserted into a message thread previously issued by the bank, therefore appearing to be a legitimate warning.
The fraudulent text states that the customer’s card has been skimmed and subsequently deactivated by the bank. The person is then asked to follow a link to a false Bank of Ireland website in order to follow steps to obtain a new bank card.
These steps, detailed in the images below, request that the customer cut their bank card in a specific way and send it by post to the specified address. They also lead the customer to submit their card number, PIN and phone number to the fraudulent website.
Once these details have been obtained, along with the card, the fraudster can access the customer’s account, make withdrawals and make online purchases.
The Garda National Economic Crime Bureau (GNECB) conducted searches today yesterday at addresses in Dublin in relation to this matter.
A number of bank cards were recovered during the course of these searches, and returned to their owners.
A male youth was arrested and is currently detained in Tallaght Garda Station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
The GNECB are advising the public as follows:
• Never click a link in an unsolicited text
• Never give away personal data like your PIN, card numbers and passwords
• A financial institution would never request a customer to return a card to the bank in such circumstances
An Garda Síochána are also urging all persons not to respond to such text messages, but instead to take a screenshot of the message, delete it and report to your local Garda station.
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