SINGAPORE: A Singaporean man posted he received an OTP SMS from a local bank for €10.95. After calling the bank and talking to a customer service representative, he wondered whether the bank took action only after a fraudulent transaction had taken place.
Qiao Tong shared his experience on Complaint Singapore . He received a seemingly legitimate SMS from his local bank. The SMS provided him with a 6-digit OTP for an online transaction worth €10.95 to purchase games on buygames.ps.
He said, “I received SMS from a local bank provided me 6 digit OTP for a online transaction with €10.95.”
Qiao Tong acted swiftly and called his bank to inquire about the authenticity of the transaction. The SMS did not specify any account or credit card information, leaving him worried about the possibility of unauthorized use of his bank account or credit card.
To his surprise, the customer service representative informed him that there were no signs of fraudulent transactions on his account. The bank also indicated that if he wished to prevent any potential misuse of his cards, they would charge him a replacement fee.
In an attempt to address the issue, the customer service representative advised Qiao Tong to use the bank’s mobile app to file a fraud report to halt any suspicious activity and avoid replacement charges. But after hearing the advice, Qiao Tong thought he was back to square one, for “then (I) need to call the same hotline again”, he wrote on Facebook.
Qiao Tong’s biggest concern is the bank’s security measures since scammers can still attempt to exploit credit cards without immediate intervention from the bank, as the bank appears to take action only after a fraudulent transaction has taken place.
Comments were quick to help.
Yoong Fy advised him to disable overseas transactions. Nick Lee asked him to block his card before calling the hotline again, saying then he wouldn’t be charged.
One curious individual, Daryl Lee, asked the name of the bank where he had this experience.
Cheryl Khoo shared that she had the same experience and said, “so I just call and ask them block my card and send replacement”.
Eugene Choo also shared some tips. She said: “You can disable online transactions. Only when you need to use then enable then disable again once done”
She explained that this would keep the scammers away.
In today’s digital age, Qiao Tong’s experience highlights the need for constant vigilance. It’s a reminder that as technology advances, so do the tactics of scammers.
However, the community’s quick response shows that by sharing knowledge, we can better protect ourselves from these threats.
Stay informed, stay safe, and keep the conversation going to outsmart scammers together!