Dozens of National Australia Bank customers have become victims of the NAB text scam. Scammers are sending out texts that look authentic and allegedly from the bank itself. The main reason that people are falling prey to this fake text is because the fraudsters are using advanced technology to make the texts appear in the same thread as the real NAB text thread.
A growing number of NAB customers have been robbed of anything between $4000 to $80,000, which is highly concerning. National Australia Bank has taken the matter seriously and is working rigorously to protect its customers from sophisticated bank text scam.
The bank has warned customers to stay alert and not to respond to the texts by transferring any money or providing bank details.
NAB Text Scam – How does it work?
It all starts with a text message that appears to be from NAB. People receive a text showing a fake bank transaction and then are advised to contact the number which will be mentioned in the text, if it was not initiated by them. At this moment people panic and contact the number in the text.
The scammer on the other end convinces people to transfer all the amount in their bank account to a “fsafe account.” Victims later realize that they were being scammed and all their money is gone.
This is called “spoofing.” Spoofing is an advanced technique used by hackers. The spoof software allows them to use the guise of NAB which is really difficult to spot. Even the caller id will be altered in such a way that you cannot tell the difference between legit bank and the scammer.
They sound like the bank and ask you to transfer your money to a new account and assure you to keep it safe. But do not trust them. They are here to swindle you out of money.
If you transfer your funds or provide sensitive personal information to strangers you will be putting yourself in grave danger and it becomes extremely difficult and in most cases impossible to recover those funds back.
NAB Text Scam Customer experience
Many individuals have suffered financial losses in the NAB Text Scam, leaving them without any means to recover their money.
One such victim, Manpreet Singh from Brisbane, lost $14,550 and fell into a state of depression. He received a text claiming that someone had tried to access $6000 from his bank account and was instructed to call a provided number.
In his distress, he called the number and was duped by the scammer into transferring $28,000 to another account. Sadly, only $14,550 went through.
Upon learning of the scam, the bank informed Singh but he feels that no action has been taken and he now lacks trust in the system.
How to protect yourself?
Scammers will often try to take advantage when people are feeling vulnerable and try to extract money and their personal details. Never trust these fake texts in one go. Contacting unknown numbers is not at all a wise decision and you may want to think twice before doing so.
NAB has made it crystal clear it will never ask the customers over the text to verify their account details, disclose sensitive financial information. NAB’s top executive has released a statement wherein he clearly mentions “people need to know that their bank will never ask you to transfer money to a new account to keep it safe – it’s safe where it is. The Bank.”
Even though great attempts are made to prevent these scams and recover funds, once the funds have been taken out of the victim’s account, it often becomes very difficult to recover them. This is due to the sophistication of these hackers and the speed with which they move stolen funds.
At the end of the day it is you who have to take primary precautions like deleting suspicious messages immediately and to cross verify it with NAB directly. If you have gone further and called the criminals, cut the call once you feel something is shady to control the damage.
NAB reported that they receive an average of 10,000 customer calls per month regarding scams and fraudulent activities. Despite this, the bank is taking all necessary steps to improve and secure their system.
Final thoughts about the NAB Scam
NAB text scam is one of the most dangerous scam going around lately. Hence it is advised to always be on the lookout for fake texts. Even if you are confident about the legitimacy of the text it would not hurt to verify from the bank before landing in a troublesome situation.
Do note that NAB will never send unsolicited texts and ask them to contact them over the phone. If you receive any texts of that nature stay away from it for your own good and make sure to report it to the higher authorities.
If you have lost a significant amount of money to online scams, do not lose hope. We can help you recover your funds!
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