Bank helpdesk fraud

Stay up to date with the latest measures from the financial sector

3 min Reading time

Has your enterprise already been contacted by phone by a so-called ‘bank employee’ before? In the case of bank helpdesk fraud, entrepreneurs are called by scammers who pretend to be a bank employee. They convince entrepreneurs that suspicious transactions have been detected on their corporate account. Afterwards, the scammers ask to take over their computer screen and to receive their personal codes. This way, they succeed in stealing big amounts of money. This type of fraud is on the rise and can lead to major financial damage in no time.

How does it happen?

 

The entrepreneur generally receives a call from a so-called employee (of the fraud department) of his/her bank warning that suspicious transactions have just been detected on the account of the company. The scammer convinces the entrepreneur about the emergency of the situation and gives them advice to prevent worse.

Once the victim is persuaded, they ask him/her to transfer money to (non-existent) ‘safe accounts’ or the client/entrepreneur is asked to cancel (non-existent) fraudulent transactions together with the so-called ‘bank employee’.

The entrepreneur is also prompted to install software (Anydesk, Teamviewer) that allows the so-called ‘bank employee’ to assist him/her. In this way, the scammer has the full control of the computer or smartphone of the client. The scammer decides what the entrepreneur can(not) see and is therefore able to log in to online banking and make bank transfers from the corporate and private accounts of the victim. The entrepreneur signs these bank transfers, thinking that these are destined to safe accounts or that he/she is cancelling these transactions.

How to protect yourself and your business

 
  • If you are called by a bank employee asking you to install software to take control of your computer, don’t accept this and end the call immediately!
  • A bank will never ask you to install software that makes it possible to remotely take over your screen or to provide your personal codes.
  • Take the necessary measures: inform your colleagues, friends or employees about this so they can better arm themselves against this type of fraud.

Got scammed?

  • Contact the bank of your business as soon as possible. Your bank is available 24/7 via special fraud numbers to report online fraud. You can find a list of contact points here (website in Dutch/French).
  • Notify Card Stop (078 170 170)
  • File a complaint with the police