April 18, 2007

NEWS: British Phishing Scheme Warning

British newspaper The Daily Mail is warning consumers of an up-and-coming Visa phishing scam that is picking up notoriety as reports of it roll in from around the nation. The reports have to do specifically with official-looking e-mails that disguise themselves as contacts from Visa’s customer service department, asking for personal details. With the body of the e-mails, the "Visa Service Department" (which doesn’t exist) warns affected cardholders their account has been accessed by a third party, and warns of potential fraud. The recipient is then asked to register a password online and to then confirm personal details to ensure their card's security. Scamsters that are unknown at the time then use the information to make bogus transactions, and possibly clone copies of the victim’s original card.

The emails bear the logo "Verified by Visa" –which looks legit enough, understandably - and ask particularly for the cardholder/victim's full name, address, date of birth and mother's maiden name, plus Visa and personal bank details. This latest fraud alert is being taken with utter seriousness by Visa Europe, said a spokesperson, adding that the company is working in cooperation with law enforcement, government and across the industry to “protect the integrity of the payment system.”

Visa also reinforced that no party associated with them will ever ask for a card-number or personal details by e-mail or phone. The ploy to obtain these crucial details in such a fashion is known as phishing, and all indications show it to be on the rise. The UK itself has experienced an unprecedented 8000% jump in fake internet banking scams in the last two years.


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