The festive season is around the corner, but scammers are not stopping their attempts to defraud people. Scammers are trying to steal unsuspecting people’s banking identities in a new variation of the SIM Swop Scam.

How this scam works: Scammers place advert(s) for an ABSA learnerships. Once an applicant contacts them they ask them if have a family member that has an ABSA account for more than a year. Then they phone the family member to confirm and obtain more info. Afterwards they pose as a Vodacom / mobile network operator agent and phone the family member again. They’ll say that there are two people using the same number, get more info and ask the person to switch off their phone. The scammers then does a SIM swop in order to use tat persons identity and access their banking account.

How to avoid this scam? Don’t give out your banking information or too much personal information over the phone. If you receive a random phone call from a banking institution or mobile network confirm if it’s actually them phoning you. Also note that a banking institution will never ask you for your pin over the phone or via an e-mail.

If you’ve encountered this or another variation of the SIM Swop scam or any other scam, please report it to our Customer Care department via ccc@junkmail.co.za or telephonically on 012-3423840 x2295 (during office hours).

Watch this space for regular updates in the Safety and Security category on the Junk Mail blog.