Banking Safely

With Cellphone banking you can safely manage your money, anytime, anywhere. But it’s important to secure your cellphone to prevent fraudsters getting access to your cellphone banking platforms.

Tips

• Never share your five-digit cellphone banking PIN with anyone.
• If you get an SMS for a SIM swap or number port you didn’t request or seem to lose cellphone connectivity for a long time without reason, call your service provider and let us know immediately on 0800 110 929.
• Make sure no one sees you entering your PIN, especially when people are standing behind or next to you.
• Always read your Approve-it messages carefully before accepting them.
• Never share an OTP with anyone.
• Secure your phone with passwords. 
• If you think your PIN has been compromised, let us know immediately on 0800 110 929.
• Make sure you have the latest antivirus software installed on all your devices and install the latest updates or patches on your operating system as soon as they become available.

Syndicates place spotters around branches who look out for people making large cash withdrawals. The spotters then inform other syndicate members who then rob these people when they leave the bank.

Carrying large sums of money increases your risk of being robbed. If you’re doing personal or business banking or carrying cash for a savings club or stokvel, you must take precautions and rather consider digital banking alternatives.

Tips for personal banking

• Avoid carrying large sums of money.
• Pay your accounts electronically. It’s convenient and much safer.
• Use cellphone banking, the Money app, Online Banking or ATMs to do your banking.
• Swipe your card to pay in-store instead of using cash.
• Nedbank has secure digital banking channels, including online, cellphone and telephone banking as well as the Money app. You can also pay through My eBills or transfer money to people using Send-iMali.

Tips for stokvel or club account banking

• Do not make large cash withdrawals or deposits on your own. Ask a friend or security company to go with you.
• Do not make cash deposits of club members’ contributions at month-end, or on the first Monday, Friday or Saturday of the month. These are all high-risk days.
• Ask members to make contributions directly into the club account.
• Make club payouts electronically into each member’s account.
• When carrying cash, do not let anyone distract you and avoid speaking to strangers.
• Do not openly display money in a branch.
• Do not let people know when you’re making deposits or withdrawals.
• You can avoid the risk of being robbed by using our digital banking channels for electronic payments. Call your banker for help with a solution that will work for you.

Tips for business banking

• Change the days, times and routes you take to the bank to make deposits or large withdrawals.
• Use different branches in your area to change your banking patterns even more.
• Avoid driving to the bank in a company-branded vehicle.
• Be aware of your surroundings. If you think you’re being followed, call the police.
• Do not tell people you’re going to the bank, not even if you trust them.
• Do not carry cash in bank bags, briefcases, or deposit books. This makes it obvious that you’re carrying cash.
• Pay beneficiaries through electronic transfers. It’s safer than making cash withdrawals.
• Do not make withdrawals at month-end, or on the first Monday, Friday or Saturday of the month. These are all high-risk days.
• Avoid paying casual or contract workers in cash. Use wage accounts instead.
• Use a cash management service instead of doing your own banking.
• Nedbank has secure banking solutions for businesses, including NetBank Business, PocketPOS, Nedbank Payroll and cash-handling. Call your banker for help with the right solution for you.

Fraudsters come up with creative scams to get their hands on your personal information. Once they have enough, they can easily pretend to be you.

Through social engineering, fraudsters manipulate you into disclosing your ID, Online Banking password or card number and PIN or giving them access to your device.

They use scare tactics like saying your account will be blocked, that your account has been defrauded and that they need to ‘reverse’ the transaction, or that you need to update your security software.

They also entice you with promises of large prizes or rewards for converting your Greenbacks into cash.

How fraudsters get your personal information

• Fraudsters ask you to click on a link in an SMS (smishing) or an email (phishing) and enter your personal information.
• They trick you into downloading malware on your computer by clicking on a link or an attachment in an email.
• Fraudsters call you (vishing) and pretend to work for a reputable company like Vodacom, SARS or Nedbank, asking you for your Nedbank ID or PIN and password.
• They trawl through your social-media profiles, collecting as much personal information as they can find.
• They intercept or steal your bank statements, municipal bills and other account statements.

Protecting your personal information is all about knowing who you can and cannot trust, and which online requests are legitimate and which are not.

Examples of personal information

• ID number
• Driving licence
• Bank statements
• Municipal bills
• Payslips
• Email account login details
• Debit or credit card PIN
• CVV number (the three- or four-digit security number on the front or back of your card)
• Your Online Banking profile, PIN and password or Nedbank ID and password OTPs.

Tips

• Slow down. Fraudsters always try to rush you. They want you to act now and think later.
• Never give anyone your Online Banking password, Nedbank ID and password or card PIN and CVV number. Nedbank will never call you to ask for these details.
• Read every Approve-it message carefully before you accept it.
• Type in addresses into your browser and do not click on links.
• Don’t assume that the person calling you is who they say they are.
• Be suspicious of unsolicited emails. Do some research first. Emails can look legitimate when they’re not.
• Make sure your mobile devices are all secured with passwords to prevent third parties from accessing them.
• Use different passwords for different online accounts.
• Make sure you have the latest antivirus software installed on all your devices.
• Install the latest updates or patches to your operating system as soon as they become available.
• Be vigilant when visiting social-media sites and never share your personal information on public pages.
• Use privacy settings on social media to make sure you share information only with friends and family.
• Do not carry confidential information in your wallet or leave it in your car.
• Shred documents containing personal information before throwing them away.
• Check your bank statements frequently and call us immediately on 0800 110 929 if you see any unfamiliar transactions.
• Forward suspicious emails to phishing@nedbank.co.za and then delete them immediately.
• If you think your information has been compromised, let us know immediately on 0800 110 929.
• Report identity theft to the Southern African Fraud Prevention Services (SAFPS) on 0860 101 248 or at safps@safps.org.za.

Once fraudsters have your card details, they can process transactions using your card and download the Money app as if they were you.

How it works

Fraudsters call you, pretending to be from Nedbank and ask you for your card PIN and CVV number (the three- or four-digit security number on the front or back of your card).

They also ask you for personal information to ‘reverse’ a fraudulent transaction or debit order or to ‘convert’ your Greenbacks into cash.

Fraudsters send you an email or an SMS, asking you to click on a link or an attachment that then asks for your card number and PIN to open a proof of payment or a bank statement or to update your account to avoid ‘deactivation’.

Tips

• Never share your card PIN or CVV number with anyone. Nedbank will never ask you for these details.
• Read Approve-it messages carefully before you accept them.
• Never share an OTP with anyone.
• If you get an Approve-it or OTP for a transaction you didn’t make, decline the Approve-it message and report it immediately on 0800 110 929.
• Use only use one card to shop online.
• Don’t do online shopping using public Wi-Fi or unsecure networks. Fraudsters can easily hack them.
• Look for the lock icon on a website’s toolbar and ‘https’ in the web address before you enter your card details or personal information online.
• Type in web addresses rather than clicking on links.
• Do a search for any warnings from people who have used the site before.
• If your card is lost or stolen, block your card on the Money app or report it immediately on 0800 110 929.
• Make sure you get your original card back after each transaction.
• If your card details have been compromised, let us know immediately on 0800 110 929. 

When you use an ATM, always be alert and aware of your surroundings so you don’t compromise your card or PIN. Fraudsters often tamper with ATMs so that they don’t work properly and then pose as friendly passers-by, offering to help. They then steal your card information.

How it works

• With card skimming, fraudsters distract you at an ATM and remove your card without you noticing. They then quickly swipe it in a skimming device and put it back in the ATM.
• Card swapping: the fraudster distracts you and swaps your card with a similar card.
• Shoulder surfing: the fraudster stands close enough behind you at the ATM to see you enter your PIN.

Tips

• Don’t ask anyone for help at an ATM. Rather go into a branch for help.
• Never accept help at an ATM, not even if the person looks like a bank official or security guard.
• Never give your card PIN to anyone; Nedbank will never ask you for this information.
• If your card is retained at an ATM, block your card on the Money app or call 0800 110 929 before you leave the ATM.
• Don’t allow anyone to see your PIN when entering it at an ATM.
• Scan the area for suspicious people before you use an ATM.
• Choose a safe and well-lit ATM where you can be seen.
• If you think an ATM has been tampered with or is faulty, do not insert your card. Go to another ATM. You can report faulty ATMs on 0860 555 111.
• Have your card ready when you approach an ATM. Don’t wait till you’re there to look for it in your bag.
• Always follow the instructions on the ATM screen carefully.
• If you struggle to insert you card at an ATM, don’t force it. The ATM could have been tampered with.
• Do not believe in hoaxes like entering your PIN backwards at an ATM will notify the police that you need help. These are scams designed to get you to reveal your PIN.

Fraudsters trick you into allowing them to use your bank account to receive money made through illegal activities, like drugs sales, human trafficking, smuggling, fraud or corruption.

They do this so that they’re not linked to the transaction and to make illegal transactions look legitimate. This is called money laundering.

If you hand your account over to someone to use and the transactions are linked to a crime, you could face criminal charges and prison time for being involved in money laundering.

Even if you didn’t know a crime was being committed, you could be banned from having a bank account or credit facilities.

How it works

• In a dating scam, fraudsters ask you to receive money and send it to a third party.
• In a false offer of employment, fraudsters give you money and ask you to open a bank account. They then ask you for the bank card and PIN so that they can withdraw the money owed from your first salary.
• Fraudsters offer you money in return for allowing someone to ‘borrow’ your account for a large deposit and withdrawal.

Tips

• Don’t allow someone else to use your account to deposit money and then transfer or withdraw the money again.
• If you have doubts about the origin of money or if a transaction appears to be unusual, for example an unexpected deposit into your account, report it to your bank and confirm the details.
• Beware of requests to roll money through your account, regardless of how legitimate the request appears.
• Remember that handing over your card and PIN allows fraudsters to clone or use your card and withdraw your money or the proceeds of the crime from your account without your knowledge.