The brand impersonation fraud mode is nothing new. The scammers will pretend to be from the bank to trick their victims. Unbeknownst to them, the victim’s account will be drained in an instant.
The strategy used by scammers tends to be very convincing. Not only that, most victims are susceptible to trust given their lack of information about this crime. This is why it is important to be vigilant by knowing the ins and outs of brand impersonation scams below.
About Brand Impersonation Scam
Brand impersonation occurs when someone impersonates a trusted brand to trick victims into responding and divulging highly sensitive information. In this case, the scammer impersonates/pretends to be from a well-known bank such as BCA.
The scammers will attempt to communicate with their potential victims for the nefarious purpose of stealing private data and draining the victim’s account. They use multiple digital media during impersonation, including social media, e-mail, and phishing websites.
The scammer will employ different methods to deceive their victims. They will create websites, call center numbers, and social media accounts that are similar to the official ones. The names, logos, content, and information on them will look similar to the layman’s eyes.
To make it even more convincing, the scammers will respond to the questions well and sound convincing. They will also provide information on ongoing bank promos from discounts to customer status upgrades.
Brand Impersonation Scam
The ultimate goal of this crime mode is to obtain sensitive information from the victims. Here are the tricks used by scammers in the brand impersonation scam.
1. Contacting Potential Victims
The first step the scammers take is to contact the victim. They can contact via telephone, short message (SMS or WhatsApp), and message their victims on social media. They will then try to convince their victims so they would fall for the scam.
2. Offering a Banking Product/Information
The scammer may start to inform or offer information from the bank. This could be anything from a discount promo to an upgrade to a priority customer. However, potential victims will first need to fill out a form containing their data.
3. Provide a fake weblink
Following the explanation, the victim will be asked to click on a link sent via text message. Upon clicking, the victim will be redirected to a fake website that is designed very similarly to the official company website.
4. Asking to Fill In Data
The scammer will ask the victim to fill in their data on the website. When they do, the data will be sent to the scammer’s server. As a result, the scammer will get important data from their victims.
5. Using the Victim’s Data to Break Into Their Account
After obtaining the data, the scammer will try to break into the victim’s account. This happens so fast that the victims are not even aware of what’s happening.
Tips to Avoid Brand Impersonation Scam
Here are some tips to help you avoid becoming a victim of this scam mode.
1. Do not trust easily, verify the authenticity of the account name/phone number
Customers should not easily trust anyone on behalf of BCA. Always check if you are contacted by anyone claiming to be from BCA and asking for sensitive information. BCA never asks for any data from its customers.
- The official Halo BCA phone number is only 1500888
- The official WhatsApp Bank BCA number is 0811-1500-998 (green badge)
- BCA’s official social media accounts can be found
2. Do not share any data/click on any links arbitrarily
Avoid giving sensitive information to anybody under any circumstances. This can include your card number (debit and credit), CVC, PINs, passwords, and your mother’s name. Also remember to never click on random links, to avoid malware.
3. Regularly change your PIN and password
Don’t forget to change your ATM PIN and mobile banking password regularly. This can reduce the risk of account breaches through data theft. Block your account if you know there’s a breach in your bank account.
4. Report to BCA
If anyone contacts you on behalf of BCA and asks for sensitive information, immediately contact/report to Halo BCA 1500888 or via the haloBCA app. BCA will follow up on this scam to ensure there are no new victims in the future.
To be more aware of the other fraud cases, find more information on #AwasModus.