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The police have taken a major step forward in the fight against help desk fraud. In collaboration with the English police, he launched a large international spoofing network On. With a technical trick, a fraudster pretends to be an employee of a bank, helpdesk or online shop. With special software, abusers can easily hide their phone numbers and supposedly call on someone else’s behalf.
Traditional crime such as burglary, theft and violence has been declining for years, but online crime continues to rise, it seems data from Statistics Netherlands.
How to recognize it and what is being done about it? We have listed five questions for you.
1. How can you recognize these scams?
Online fraud and especially with this spoofing technique is extremely difficult to recognize. “You’re called with a number from your bank and you’re really sucked into a story,” says Fraudehelpdesk spokeswoman Tanya Wijngaarden.
Wijngaarden says it’s often very difficult to determine if there’s a smell. “They call you by your first name and have gathered a lot of information. So you don’t easily think it’s wrong.”
What can you do then? It may be an open door, but be alert and aware. Or as the Fraud Helpdesk says: check, check and double check. “Check carefully who you are dealing with, read reviews, look up numbers or call back, and only take action when you are 100% sure it is correct.”
2. There are so many scams, are scammers getting more creative?
Fraudsters are always looking for new ways to commit fraud. They also cling to current events: they have found ways to make money from the war in Ukraine and the coronavirus crisis by duping well-meaning donors.
“Fraudsters are increasingly gaining access to personal information through phishingdata breaches at companies and the dark web”, Wijngaarden explains about the ways scammers operate.
3. What is done against online fraud?
Due to the cat-and-mouse game between banks and crooks, it is becoming increasingly difficult to commit fraud. It’s often no longer possible to empty a bank account by handing over someone’s credit card information or password – every major bank requires an extra verification step to prevent abuse.
Organizations such as Fraudehelpdesk and Veiliginternetten.nl regularly launch campaigns to make people more aware of the dangers. The Dutch Banking Association (NVB) is also involved in the fight against fraud and recently started the campaign: Fraud. Here’s how it works!
“If you want to protect people, they first need to know how a scammer works. So they’re less likely to fall for it,” says NVB’s Jelle Wijkstra.
4. What should you do if you have been scammed?
If you’ve transferred money or clicked on a phishing link, it’s best to call your bank immediately and report it. Undoing a transaction is virtually impossible, but blocking your account prevents further damage.
The Fraud Helpdesk also encourages people to report it, so it can be better mapped out what’s going on in the field of fraud.
5. Can you get your money back if you have been scammed?
It really depends on the form of the fraud. “Banks make up for the damage if it’s the kind where you didn’t transfer the money yourself,” says NVB’s Wijkstra.
If you do, there is a small chance that you will be reimbursed for the damage. However, there is still one possible solution. “Nowadays you can ask the bank for the name and address of such a bank account number. Then you can initiate civil proceedings yourself.”
And this offers perspective: The Fraud Helpdesk sees that civil cases have a better chance than criminal cases, where the perpetrator must first be discovered.
