Vishing: telephone fraud on the rise
27 February 2026 - 4 min Reading time
In response to the increase in telephone fraud, also known as “vishing” (a combination of “voice” and “phishing”), Febelfin is also calling for increased vigilance.
In these types of fraud, criminals contact people by phone and pretend to be bank employees, Card Stop staff, or representatives of trusted organisations such as a telecom operator or the police.
Their aim is to put you under pressure so that you disclose personal information or initiate a fraudulent payment yourself.
Sometimes a fake employee… sometimes a robocall
Vishing attempts can take various forms.
They may include:
- a direct call from someone claiming to be an employee of your bank, Card Stop or another trusted organisation;
- a pre-recorded message (robocall) informing you of a suspicious transaction and asking you to press a key to be connected to an “employee”, who is in fact a fraudster.
Even if the call sounds professional, even if the displayed number appears to be Belgian, even if the caller knows certain information about you (for example, some digits of your bank account number), this is by no means a guarantee of authenticity.
Fraudsters use data obtained through various means to make their story more credible.
What are fraudsters trying to obtain?
Over the phone, they may try to persuade you to:
- disclose your PIN or the response codes from your card reader;
- confirm a transaction via your itsme® app;
- make a transfer to a so-called “secure account”;
- install software that gives them remote access to your device.
For example, a fraudster may claim that a transaction via itsme® or using a response code needs to be “blocked” or “cancelled”. In reality, this action actually approves a payment, allowing the fraudster to carry out the transaction.
How should you respond?
- Never share codes or passwords.
- Do not approve any transaction under pressure following an unexpected call.
- Do not follow instructions during a suspicious phone call.
- Hang up immediately.
- If in doubt, contact your bank yourself using the official phone number.
The golden rule
A genuine bank employee (just like a legitimate representative of a trusted organisation) will never ask you to:
- disclose a PIN or card reader response code;
- make a transfer to “secure” money;
- install remote access software;
- open the itsme® app to approve an action.
When a bank genuinely contacts a customer in relation to detected fraud, the customer does not need to take any action themselves. If suspicious transactions are identified, banks can take the necessary measures themselves to secure accounts. Any contact is solely to verify a transaction.
In addition, Card Stop never proactively contacts customers. Any call claiming to be from Card Stop is a fraud attempt.
What if I am a victim of fraud?
- Contact your bank as quickly as possible via the fraud department (available 24/7).
- File a police report and report the fraud.
