Cyber criminals and financial fraudsters keep on finding new ways to take advantage of people’s gullibility/unawareness and make them fall prey to their trap. While various laws and regulators have made their traditional ways of fraud ineffective, they have come up with a new way to steal money. There is a new scam that has been going around in the country, known as the ‘Rent-a-bank-account scam’.
These cyber criminals used to employ proven traditional methods of fraud, such as phishing and stealing PIN numbers/passwords, among other tricks. In their latest ‘Rent-a-bank-account scam’, these fraudsters will get a third party to access and use your bank account. This latest scam is flourishing through personal and social media-led arrangements.
What is bank account renting?
In simple terms, you can use one’s bank account for the use of another. In such an arrangement, the renter is either paid a lump sum or paid in instalments over varying time periods.
What goes on in this scam?
These fraudsters rent out people’s bank accounts to perform criminal and fraudulent activities. They put the account holders at risk for criminal charges and facing large financial claims. The cyber criminals promise people either 1-5% of the funds transferred via their accounts or a large one-time payment, according to Moneycontrol.
How to stay safe from such cyber scams?
While many cyber criminals/fraudsters keep looking for their next target, you can prevent yourself from being one. Start by following these steps given by the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal of India :
- Never click on links or files received in email, text message or social media from an unknown person. This may be an attempt to infect a computer with malware.
- Keep your web camera covered. If your camera is hacked/compromised, it can be leveraged as a medium to observe/watch and record day-to-day activities. It is recommended to cover the webcam when not in use.
- Keep your software and Operating system up-to-date to have the latest security patches.
- Never install software, games, music and apps from trusted sources.