It's difficult to stay on top of all of these different terms, but simply put, these are methods fraudsters use to trick you into sharing personal information or parting with your hard-earned money.

Fraudsters impersonate well-known organisations by doing the following:

Phishing

Phishing emails ask users to click on a link in the email. This link will direct them to a 'spoofed' website (a fake website that very closely resembles the original site). to obtain, verify or update contact details or other sensitive financial information.

Fraudsters send these hoping to trick people into clicking on the links, sharing personal information, verifying details, or buying products from counterfeit platforms.

Tips

• Do not click on any links or icons in unsolicited emails, and don't reply to them. Instead, take a screenshot for the purpose of reporting and your own records, then DELETE the email immediately!
• Verify legitimacy by visiting the institution's official website directly and contacting them through trusted channels.
• Check the website with our Yima website vulnerability scanner to ensure the site is safe.
• Report incidents through the Yima website to help prevent future phishing attacks and protect others!
• Do not interact - immediately block and report!

Smishing

Smishing is short for 'SMS phishing'. This is when fraudsters send an SMS pretending to be an organisation asking for financial or personal information.

They send out many messages hoping to catch people who are busy, distracted and not in a position to pick up on the little signs that it is not a legitimate message.

If you click on these links, it could lead you to a 'spoof website' asking for specific information that they will use to their advantage, or it could even install malware onto your phone!

Tips

• Don't click on links in unexpected or suspicious text messages. If you're unsure, take a screenshot of the message for the purpose of reporting and your own records, then BLOCK and DELETE the message immediately.
• Do not share personal information in response to texts from unknown numbers or unverified contacts.
• Verify the content with the official source by contacting them directly through their website or customer service, rather than responding to the text.
• Look out for urgency and threats in messages claiming immediate action is needed-they're common in Smishing tactics.
• Report suspicious messages to your mobile provider or via official channels to help prevent future scams. Stay alert!
• Suspect your device may be compromised? Contact your service provider and bank immediately and delink your device from any authenticator applications.
• Do not store sensitive information, like personal details or banking info, on your smartphone to protect against potential malware threats.

Vishing

Vishing is social engineering over the phone. Fraudsters will call you pretending to be from a specific organisation, asking you to share your personal information over the phone.

They may also send SMSs saying that a debit order has been authorised on your account, or that a transaction has been processed on your account etc. This prompts you to panic and contact them to find out more. The fraudster will then play along and ask you to confirm your personal information in order to proceed and 'fix' the situation. They may even try to convince you to accept an approval message on your phone or to share a one-time password (OTP) with them so that they can transact on your account.

It's important to note that fraudsters have started using caller identity spoofing, so the call will appear to be from a legitimate company to deceive you.

Tips

• Be on guard! If the call is unexpected, do not share personal information. Rather end the call and contact the organisation via their formal channels.
• Never share personal details, passwords, card info, or OTPs over the phone. Legitimate service providers won't ask for your login or password.
• Pay close attention to pop-up messages/prompts, and permissions on your phone, ensuring you know what access you're granting the requester.

Stop. Think. Don't get scammed!