Deception can take many forms. Even if the content of the message changes each time, the goal remains the same: find a potential victim in a vulnerable position, feel the pressure, make an important decision in a short time and register in some fake website sensitive personal data and passwords, unknowingly telling someone cybercriminal access to his bank account.

OUR “K” selects a few of electronic fraud recent years, with victims in Greece.

• Wrong result in search engines. From time to time, Internet users look up their bank’s email address in search engines instead of typing it directly into a browser. However, in some cases clone websites appear among the first results. These fake websites look visually identical to the real one. The scam can be seen if someone notices the URL. In a related case reported ink”, the address was myalpha-bank.com, which does not correspond to a real bank. The victim entered his codes, and the criminals stole 8,000 euros.

What tricks they use to deceive citizens electronically and get personal data and passwords.

• Estimated messages of banks. They usually come in an email stating that the account or card has been blocked and the owner must update their information immediately. However, if someone clicks on the respective link, they will be taken to the clone website again. For example, last year there was an email circulating that allegedly was sent by the National Bank. “Dear customer, this is an automatic notification that your account has been suspended.” It was enough to look at the email address of the sender “ibankin-nbg” to understand that it was a scam.

• SMS “from AADE”. Misleading messages can also come in the form of SMS. Last year, one of them was supposed to be sent to the Independent Internal Revenue Administration. “Your ENFIA VAT fine is $211.84, pay via PAYSAFE to avoid immediate arrest,” it says, citing the email. Even from the writing of the message, it was clear that it was a scam.

• “Forgotten” parcels ELTA. “Unfortunately, the delivery was delayed due to lack of information. Your parcel will be held at the sorting center in Athens until you confirm your details,” reads an email received on 07/12/2022 from a civil engineer in Crete “Please note that from tomorrow we will charge you a storage fee of one euro per day.” He provided his card details to pay the storage fee of 2.84 euros, and the cybercriminals escaped with 5674 euros. The money appears to have been spent on purchases from a Tripadvisor-owned company and possibly a Spanish hotel search website, K reported that the details of hundreds of Greek citizens (names, addresses, bank account numbers and even passwords), who were misled as a result of a similar scam ended up in a specific Telegram account run by cybercriminals.

• Phone scam. Attackers find an advertisement for a product on the Internet, contact the seller and ask them to pay via electronic banking. They send the victim a false proof of deposit via Viber. Their alleged deposit is in a different bank than the one where the victim has an account. Thus, the criminals enjoy a “window” of 48 hours (Valer) during which the credit is not visible. They write more than the agreed amount on fake money deposit receipts, contact the victim again and ask for the extra money they accidentally deposited to be returned. Confectionery owners in Igoumenitsa and Komotini, building materials businesses in Kos and Kilkis, and citizens who advertised for the sale of goods or services online were approached or misled by members of a group of scammers using this tactic. .