Fraud via Twint: beware of this simple scam
The Swiss payment app Twint is being targeted by cyber criminals. They use various tricks to obtain money from unsuspecting users. Because the service is considered trustworthy, the effort required by the fraudsters is minimal.
For many people, the first glance at their mobile is part of waking up. Even before the day really starts, you might check the news or the weather forecast - or see a Twint message on the screen. It is precisely this moment that fraudsters are currently exploiting. The Federal Office for Cybersecurity (BACS) is warning of a new scam in which cyber criminals are trying to catch Twint users in an unfocussed state.
Request instead of send
The method is simple but effective: early in the morning, you receive a payment request with an innocuous-sounding text such as «Thanks back» or «Debt from yesterday». Many people think at this moment that someone wants to settle an outstanding debt and automatically tap on «Confirm». In reality, they are authorising a payment - the money does not go to them, but to the fraudsters. Depending on the app, the note «Claim» may not be prominently displayed in the message.
The amounts involved are often smaller - 20, 50 or 80 francs. As a result, the transactions hardly arouse any suspicion and many of those affected only realise hours later that they have been scammed. The requests often come from prepaid numbers or the prepaid Twint app, which can also be used with German, Austrian or Liechtenstein mobile numbers. In some cases, the perpetrators also use profile pictures to suggest more authenticity.
Source: Florian Bodoky
You should consider these details
As easy as this method is for the scammers, it is just as easy for you to see through
- If you receive money via Twint, it will simply be credited to your account. You don't have to accept or authorise anything.
- The push message you receive is usually clearer: XY is requesting money from you.
- The amounts are often not in five-cent increments. If the display shows around 18.99 francs - as in my example - this is already suspicious.
- Pay attention to the time of the enquiry. Did it come in the middle of the night or early in the morning? This can also be an indicator of attempted fraud.
- If this does happen to you, report it to Twint support as soon as possible.
More Twint scams known
Source: Cybercrimepolice.ch
In addition to this low-key scam, there are also other tricks designed to trick Twint users out of their money. For example, Cybercrimepolice.ch reports that several text messages are doing the rounds that purport to come from Twint. Either with a warning that an account will soon be blocked or with a request for data. You are lured into a WhatsApp chat or to a fake Twint website that asks for payment details. If you have fallen for such a scam, you should have the cards in question blocked and report the case on this website.
I've been tinkering with digital networks ever since I found out how to activate both telephone channels on the ISDN card for greater bandwidth. As for the analogue variety, I've been doing that since I learned to talk. Though Winterthur is my adoptive home city, my heart still bleeds red and blue.
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