There are many financial scams applied in Brazil, and most have similar objectives: obtaining personal information from victims, profiting through financial transactions. According to Febraban (National Federation of Banks), fraud can range from phone calls to emails or SMS.
Criminals, to deceive people, use ingenious and really persuasive techniques to get them to provide confidential information, for example, credit card numbers and passwords. But, how do you know that the actions are scams and how to prevent yourself?
Main scams that are being applied at the moment
To help people protect themselves against scam attempts, below we list the five main frauds and how to prevent them:
1. Income Tax Scams
Now, with the deadline for sending Income Tax returns, the incidence of fraud related to the Federal Revenue Service is increasing. These are fake applications that pretend to be official government platforms.
Even though they look visually similar, fraudulent applications steal the information entered by the user. So, with the data, it is difficult to prove that possible transactions made later were the work of scammers.
How to avoid
Application downloads must only be made from the official smartphone store or via the link accessed directly from the official IRS website. Furthermore, you can check the developer, reviews and number of downloads.
2.0800 Scam
Here, criminals claim to be from financial institutions sending messages warning about suspicious high-value transactions. They request direct contact with the supposed call center on 0800.
When victims get in touch, the scammers say that the “transaction” is under analysis, but that to cancel it, they need to provide some data, inducing people to say their password and bank account number, for example.
How to avoid
You should not call any number provided by message or phone call. If you need to speak to an institution, access the official website and search for the number. But, for even greater security, just go to the bank in person.
3. Bill scam
Sometimes we are late paying one bill or another. Somehow, criminals manage to access information and offer to update the barcode, including interest and fines, allowing online payment via PIX or even QR Code, but the target is for orange accounts.
How to avoid
When paying any bill, PIX code or QR Code, you need to be very careful. Check the data, whether it really belongs to the company you want to pay, whether the original value matches, etc.
4.Online Job Fulfillment Scams
Through messaging apps, criminals claim to be employees of digital marketing companies, selecting people for online jobs. Thus, they offer the opportunity to earn money easily and quickly by performing simple tasks, such as following accounts, liking photos, etc.
In the beginning, the victim completes the tasks and receives a minimum PIX. However, upon gaining credibility, the criminal says that for his earnings to increase he must pay to join a “special group”. The promise is to return the amount on the same day – which will never happen.
How to avoid
Febraban recommends never accepting “too easy” job offers, or even promises of low investment with instant returns. There is no job that you have to pay to earn and no type of honest investment that gives a quick and easy return.
5.WhatsApp Clone Scam
The scammer sends a message through the app pretending to be an employee of a company where the victim is registered or has previously done business. Subsequently, it asks the victim to forward the security code sent via SMS, claiming to be an update, confirmation or registration maintenance. Thus, he replicates the WhatsApp account and then sends messages to some of the victim’s contacts, asking them to lend urgent money.
How to avoid
Never give any security code to strangers on WhatsApp. Another security measure is to enable “Two-Step Verification” in the app. To do this, simply follow the steps below:
- IOS – Settings > Account > Two-step confirmation > Enable > Create a 6-digit PIN password
- Android – Settings > Account > Two-step confirmation > Activate
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