Bank of Ireland issues urgent warning over 'new wave' of scam texts
A new text scam is targeting Bank of Ireland customers, luring them into calling a fake bank phoneline.
Bank of Ireland has had more than 20 fake phonelines closed down so far in April.
The elaborate scam targets customers with a text message to their phone regarding a recent transaction. They then direct the customer to call a phone number in relation to the issue. A new text scam is targeting Bank of Ireland customers, luring they to call a fake bank phoneline. Pic: Robson90/Shutterstock
The caller is then persuaded into providing their confidential bank details to the fraudster or transferring money into their account.
Sharing advice for consumers, Nicola Sadlier, Head of Fraud at Bank of Ireland, said: 'We want to warn people as we are seeing a particular spike in these phone scams at the moment. We have seen more than 20 fake phonelines so far in April, that's a significant increase on other months.
'If a customer needs to verify if any text message is legitimate they can call their bank using the phone number on their bank card. Bank of Ireland customers can also use our TextChecker service. Bank of Ireland has had more than 20 fake phonelines closed down so far in April. Pic: Shutterstock
'If someone suspects they have been a victim of fraud they should contact their bank immediately so that the bank can take action to stop a fraud in progress and try to recover funds. If we're suspicious about possible fraud on your debit or credit card, we might text you and ask you to confirm if you made a transaction, but all you have to do is reply YES or NO.'
What to look out for Text messages claiming to be from your bank, asking you to call a number to confirm financial or personal information.
These texts can drop into a thread of genuine texts.
Often they claim that urgent action is needed or there will be negative consequences. The elaborate scam targets customers with a text message to their phone regarding a recent transaction. They then direct the customer to call a phone number in relation to the issue. Pic: Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images
What Bank of Ireland customers can do
If you need to check if a text is genuine, call your bank using the phone number on your bank card.
If a text claims to be from Bank of Ireland but you are not sure if it's genuine, customers can also use TextChecker to verify it. Copy the text you wish to verify. Paste into a new message. Add the word CHECK before the text. (In the same text) Send to 50365.
Bank of Ireland customers can call the Bank's Fraud Team 24/7, on the Freephone line 1800 946 764.
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