WINDHOEK – As the holiday season approaches, Bank Windhoek has warned clients and the general public to be vigilant and prevent financial fraud, which is normally rampant during the festive season.
Financial fraud includes, amongst others, phishing, ATM fraud, card fraud and identity fraud. One of the common types of fraud is phishing, a process by which someone obtains your private information through devious means in order to fraudulently assume your identity and ultimately gain control over your bank account. It includes fraudulent e-mail messages, sms messages and bogus telephone calls that lure clients to provide their personal information. Bank Windhoek would therefore like to urge clients to be cautious as fraudsters continuously come up with innovative ways such as setting up fake websites similar to the original bank’s website and sending e-mails using the bank’s logo as a validation of their supposed authenticity.
“Throughout the year, Bank Windhoek sent out a number of media releases warning clients not to respond to fraudulent e-mails, sms messages or telephone calls. Clients should therefore take responsibility and exercise caution since phishing depends entirely on the victim’s cooperation,” said Ina Muir, Forensic Auditor at Bank Windhoek.
In addition, the Development Bank of Namibia (DBN) has also warned the public that fraudulent letters are in circulation.