Receiving calls from numbers you don’t know is the order of the day. And among these, some scam attempt by cybercriminals can be hidden. They no longer only attack through fraudulent emails or SMS, but also pose as large financial institutions such as Banco Santander.
Not all the calls you receive hide a scam, but if they call you from Santander and begin to ask you for a series of sensitive data such as the CVV of your card, the truth is that it is better to hang up. This type of fraud is responsible for building trust with the victims by offering personal information, such as ID, the address where you live or even the latest card movements. But, be very careful, since they don’t call you from the bank.
Don’t step into the trap
Every year, digital fraud grows as cybercriminals use different techniques to deceive people. On this occasion, in recent days there has been a new case of vishing. What does it consist of? It is a call with which they want to obtain personal data by impersonating the identity of a third party, in this case Banco Santander.
During the call they will tell you information they know about you: ID, the last digits of the card and the movements you have made, your home address, etc. The reason for the call is that they have supposedly tried to make a supposed PIN change. However, the reason for the call could be something else entirely, such as an attempt to pass a charge to your account that is “strange.” And all in order to obtain other sensitive data from your bank account or credit card.
In this new scam attempt, a supposed Santander agent will try to convince you that someone has tried to access your account from another phone and they call you to let you know, since it is not a trustworthy smartphone. They will even tell you the location from which they wanted to access your account. So far everything seems reasonable, however, the problem appears when they ask you for the CVV in order to temporarily block the card. A code used to confirm online purchases, for example.
Well, be clear that the bank will not ask you at any time for this type of sensitive information through email, calls, SMS or any other channel that is not secure. Now, how do you have to act?
- Do not offer any type of information: CVV, the expiration date of the card or other data.
- Hang up the call and do not enter any SMS or link that is sent to the phone at that very moment during the call.
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Get in touch with Banco Santander to report what has happened to you, in case they have to take measures such as blocking the account and the card.
The latter is also very important, especially when a cybercriminal has your card number, the latest movements you have made, or other types of information. Therefore, the ideal is to call Santander so that they give you a solution.
