Beware: Financial Fraudsters Are On The Prowl!

Amid the pandemic, conmen are employing a variety of ruses to siphon your money: be prudent, stay safe

- Anand Kalyanaraman

In a world massively disrupted by COVID-19, financial fraudsters are on the prowl, preying on the many rendered emotionally and financially vulnerable.

Be alert and on your guard. The last thing you want in these tough times of medical and economic upheaval is falling victim to conmen out to steal your money.

Many hooks

The fraudsters employ many methods — some new and some time-tested. They are also quick, making use of day-to-day developments. For instance, after the recent RBI announcement on EMI moratorium on loans, there were cases of borrowers getting calls asking for OTPs (one-time passwords) to process the EMI deferment. These calls were made by tricksters trying to get hold of the OTP on a fraudulent transaction to siphon money from borrowers’ accounts.

Soon, banks such as SBI and Axis Bank warned customers about this scam, stating clearly that OTP was not required to process the EMI moratorium, and that OTPs should never be shared.

Then, there were cases of many fake UPI ids seeking donations to the PM CARES fund that has been set up by the government to provide relief to persons affected by the coronavirus. The SBI clarified that pmcares@sbi is the correct UPI id.