The use of the Internet has expanded tremendously over the years, but as convenient as it is, it can also be dangerous.
Today you can virtually handle your money matters anytime and anywhere through either mobile or Internet banking. As electronic banking becomes more real-time and more convenient for users, so too does it become more attractive to criminals.
CEO of South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC) Kalyani Pillay shares a few tips to avoid being a victim of Internet banking crime:
• Register for your bank’s cellphone notification service and receive electronic messages relating to activities or transactions on your accounts as and when they occur.
• Ensure that you are on your bank’s secure website and not on a spoof site that looks like the real website.
• Log on into your bank’s website by typing in the web address yourself instead of accessing it via Google search as it might lead you to a spoofed site.
• Do not use web links that are saved under your favourites to get to your online banking and never access your bank’s website from a link in an email or SMS.
• Never do Internet banking in public areas such as Internet cafes, as you never know what software is loaded that may compromise your transactions.
• Only make purchases with your bank card on reputable websites that are verified as secure sites (eg. look for the lock image on the toolbar).
