Expert Stekolnikov: vigilance remains the main way to protect against fraud with bank accounts.
The average amount of thefts from citizens bank accounts, according to the Bank of Russia, increased by 30% in 2022; over the past year, more than 13 billion rubles were stolen from clients of credit institutions, noted Alexander Stekolnikov, a member of the digital economy committee of Support of Russia. The expert told Izvestia what methods there are to steal money from cards and how to recognize scammers.
“In matters of carding (a type of fraud in which an operation is carried out using a payment card), the basis is still occupied by social engineering, that is, working with the psychology of the victim,” Stekolnikov explained.
According to him, attackers gain trust by posing as someone reliable: the bank’s security service, law enforcement agencies, social services.
“Most often they make a phone call and start working on the victim’s basic feelings, for example, fear of being robbed or fear for their health or a loved one. The key task is to lure out card data, code words and other personal data through dialogue,” the expert said.
In addition, according to him, scammers use instant messengers and correspondence on social networks, where, for example, they can make acquaintances and then ask for money to move to their “lover” or “sweetheart.”
He named job offers as another popular method among scammers. Victims, agreeing to minor activities on the Internet, send the attackers their bank card information to receive a reward.
“With the expansion of modern technology, phishing technology has emerged. Fraudsters create copies of existing websites with fake payment details or forms of payment for services. <...> Scammers have made a similar technology for QR codes; by scanning such a code with a smartphone, you are taken to a phishing page,” Stekolnikov added.
Copies of well-known Telegram channels are also created, where messages about fundraising for charitable purposes are published.
However, the most technologically complex, according to the expert, is the method using a card reader - a device for scanning a card.
“The fraudster carries it in his pocket, the task is to lean closer to your card, which is in your pocket or wallet, for example, in public transport. The device reads the card data and automatically processes it as a payment without a PIN code. Or, which is more difficult, it simply copies your card. Scammers use this data and magnetize “blanks” for cards, making a copy of yours,” Stekolnikov explained.
He also named another method of carding - Trojans and viruses that get onto the user’s computer or smartphone. As the expert clarified, the virus can stay on the device for several months and collect logins, passwords and other personal data that is used to log into the bank. After this, the user’s banking page may change when transferring funds, or the recipient’s details may change.
“Banks are fighting scammers by constantly improving the software of their websites, ATMs, and cards. They create bots that are installed on phones and block calls from numbers in the black database. Stop suspicious transactions from unfamiliar places, cities or countries. A database of suspicious bank cards is maintained, and if money is transferred to them, a real user receives a call from the bank confirming the information,” Stekolnikov said.
The expert added that credit institutions also establish two-factor or three-factor protection when entering a website or conducting a transaction.
“Together with the development of carding, banks will constantly develop in this cyber war. However, the main method of protection remains the vigilance and suspicion of the card holder,” Stekolnikov concluded.
Earlier, on March 5, it was reported that telephone scammers had come up with a new technique to deceive Russians in instant messengers. Thus, attackers began to use foreign phone numbers that are visually similar to Russian ones. Carders put either the coat of arms of Russia or the emblems of Russian law enforcement agencies on their avatars in their accounts.
(c) https://iz.ru/1479760/2023-03-06/ekspert-rasskazal-o-vidakh-moshennichestva-s-bankovskimi-kartami
The average amount of thefts from citizens bank accounts, according to the Bank of Russia, increased by 30% in 2022; over the past year, more than 13 billion rubles were stolen from clients of credit institutions, noted Alexander Stekolnikov, a member of the digital economy committee of Support of Russia. The expert told Izvestia what methods there are to steal money from cards and how to recognize scammers.
“In matters of carding (a type of fraud in which an operation is carried out using a payment card), the basis is still occupied by social engineering, that is, working with the psychology of the victim,” Stekolnikov explained.
According to him, attackers gain trust by posing as someone reliable: the bank’s security service, law enforcement agencies, social services.
“Most often they make a phone call and start working on the victim’s basic feelings, for example, fear of being robbed or fear for their health or a loved one. The key task is to lure out card data, code words and other personal data through dialogue,” the expert said.
In addition, according to him, scammers use instant messengers and correspondence on social networks, where, for example, they can make acquaintances and then ask for money to move to their “lover” or “sweetheart.”
He named job offers as another popular method among scammers. Victims, agreeing to minor activities on the Internet, send the attackers their bank card information to receive a reward.
“With the expansion of modern technology, phishing technology has emerged. Fraudsters create copies of existing websites with fake payment details or forms of payment for services. <...> Scammers have made a similar technology for QR codes; by scanning such a code with a smartphone, you are taken to a phishing page,” Stekolnikov added.
Copies of well-known Telegram channels are also created, where messages about fundraising for charitable purposes are published.
However, the most technologically complex, according to the expert, is the method using a card reader - a device for scanning a card.
“The fraudster carries it in his pocket, the task is to lean closer to your card, which is in your pocket or wallet, for example, in public transport. The device reads the card data and automatically processes it as a payment without a PIN code. Or, which is more difficult, it simply copies your card. Scammers use this data and magnetize “blanks” for cards, making a copy of yours,” Stekolnikov explained.
He also named another method of carding - Trojans and viruses that get onto the user’s computer or smartphone. As the expert clarified, the virus can stay on the device for several months and collect logins, passwords and other personal data that is used to log into the bank. After this, the user’s banking page may change when transferring funds, or the recipient’s details may change.
“Banks are fighting scammers by constantly improving the software of their websites, ATMs, and cards. They create bots that are installed on phones and block calls from numbers in the black database. Stop suspicious transactions from unfamiliar places, cities or countries. A database of suspicious bank cards is maintained, and if money is transferred to them, a real user receives a call from the bank confirming the information,” Stekolnikov said.
The expert added that credit institutions also establish two-factor or three-factor protection when entering a website or conducting a transaction.
“Together with the development of carding, banks will constantly develop in this cyber war. However, the main method of protection remains the vigilance and suspicion of the card holder,” Stekolnikov concluded.
Earlier, on March 5, it was reported that telephone scammers had come up with a new technique to deceive Russians in instant messengers. Thus, attackers began to use foreign phone numbers that are visually similar to Russian ones. Carders put either the coat of arms of Russia or the emblems of Russian law enforcement agencies on their avatars in their accounts.
(c) https://iz.ru/1479760/2023-03-06/ekspert-rasskazal-o-vidakh-moshennichestva-s-bankovskimi-kartami
