Five smart things to know about financial information frauds

Phishing: An authentic looking email will typically direct the user to a bogus website where the user will be prompted to update sensitive personal information, such as password to a bank account.

Vishing: Such frauds involve phone calls. A call from someone pretending to be your bank or credit card executive will give an offer and the caller will seek personal data for ‘verification’.

Smishing: Frauds through sms. An sms is received from someone pretending to be your bank or credit card company with an offer or for verification where they ask for personal data.

Skimming: The debit/credit card is swiped at a card copier and the details contained in its magnetic strip are copied onto another blank card and then used for transactions.

Carding: The process of verifying the authenticity of the stolen data of the debit/credit cards. It is first used for a small purchase. If it is successful, it is used for big amounts.



(Content courtesy Centre for Investment Education and Learning (CIEL). Contributions by Girija Gadre, Arti Bhargava and Labdhi Mehta)