Santander has issued a warning to customers over "social engineering" scams.
Fraudsters use this tactic to appear trusting and lure victims into sharing personal information. The bank warned: "Criminals use sophisticated techniques, invoking fear, panic or building a friendship." - as The Express reports.
Santander warns fraudsters impersonate trusted, genuine companies or individuals, such as a victim’s bank, the police or even personal friends or family members. The bank cites remote access scams as a form of social engineering, when fraudsters use legitimate apps in a bid to appear more genuine.
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These scams see the fraudster impersonate official organisations and persuade victims to give them remote control of their personal computer. It adds: "They do this by asking you to download a legitimate app such as TeamViewer or AnyDesk, or by simply getting you to click on a link.
“You should never allow remote access to your devices unless you have verified that the caller is genuine and trusted.” Santander notes if a victim happens to grant access to the scammer they should never open banking apps or windows.
This is because remote access provides the scammer with full view and access to a person's computer screen. Fraudsters also utilise emails, text or phone calls as part of "social engineering" scams.
Santander warns: “Never reply or act on anything without verifying that it’s from a legitimate source.” In some cases banks may not be able to refund a victims’ lost money if they did not take necessary precautions to avoid becoming a victim in the first place.
People who believe they may have fallen victim to a scam are urged to contact their bank or building society as soon as possible and report it to Action Fraud.
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