Secure Online Banking

Familiarise yourself with online security. Take steps to be vigilant and reduce the risk of unauthorised online access to your bank accounts. Adhere to the following rules:

Do not trust emails that claim to be your bank asking for personal information, user IDs, and password or account numbers, or to confirm account information.
Never access your bank online via a link.

Ensure that you’re on a secure banking site by checking for the ‘s’ at the end of ‘http’ in the website address. E.g.: https://www.bidvestbank.com
Create strong passwords for your accounts. Longer and more complex combinations are stronger. Use uppercase, lowercase, numerals and symbols and change it every 90 days.
Avoid performing any other task while you're logged in to online banking.
Install your firewall, anti-virus and internet security software and keep it updated.
Contact your bank whenever your contact details change (email address, phone numbers, and physical address.)

If you believe that you’ve been the victim of a phishing attempt, supply us with full details by immediately sending an e-mail to: fraudsquad@bidvestbank.co.za.

Security Tips When Using Your Bank Card

Travelling Abroad

Your World Currency Card^TM comes with a duplicate card that you can use as a backup should one go missing. Keep the two separate.
Make sure your bank has your contact number or email address where you can be reached should something occur on your account they need to verify.
Keep the contact numbers for lost cards handy for immediate access.

At ATMs

Be aware of your surroundings.
Do not allow anyone too close to you that may distract you or offer help.
Only insert your card on instruction of the ATM.
If a strange message appears on the screen, remove your card and use it at another ATM, preferably at a different location.
Screen the keypad from outside view when entering your PIN.
Secure your card and cash before leaving the area.
Never let your card out of your sight and do not be distracted while busy with a transaction.
Set your ATM limit according to your average spend.
Keep your bank’s contact centre on hand in case you need to report your card lost or stolen.
Do not write your PIN number down.

Making purchases

Make sure you get your own card back after every purchase.
Never let your card out of your sight.
Cover your PIN number when you enter it at a point of sale terminal.

General Precautions

Inform us of any changes in your personal details.
Never keep your card and PIN number together.
Cut unused cards up and throw the pieces away separately.
Keep sensitive information in a safe place or shred it.
Regularly check your bank accounts to make sure everything is in order.

Fraud Prevention

Being aware of fraudulent activity is the first step to security in banking. Familiarise yourself and take steps to be vigilant to reduce the risks of fraud.

Your Computer

Lock your computer when unattended.
Report suspicious activity on your work computer to your IT department.
Report suspicious activity that occurs on a site you have been on.
Install firewall, anti-spyware and anti-virus software and keep it updated.
Choose the right level of security for your computer.

Your email

Never send passwords or PIN numbers over email.
Be cautious to enter your email address on a website where you’re not sure what it will be used for.
Do not open attachments on email from email addresses you don’t recognise.
Do not respond to an email address you do not recognise. Delete them from your inbox.

Your Password

Make your password longer than eight characters and use upper case, lower case, alphabets, numerals, and symbols.
Don’t use predictable passwords such as names or birthdates.
Change your password frequently.
Create a different password each time you change it, don’t reuse previous passwords.
Keep your password safe in your head and don’t share it with anyone.

Your Personal Information

Proceed with caution when supplying personal details online.
When providing details online, make sure it is a reputable website and was not accessed via a link or a pop-up.
Make sure to check the website addresses of the site to ensure that it is legitimate.
Do not fall for emails asking you to divulge your personal information or to verify your account details.
Notify us of changes of address and phone numbers.

Financial Identity Theft

Your personal information is the key to your finances and your credit history. If stolen, it can be used to commit fraud to obtain funds, purchase goods, and acquire services under your name. By familiarising yourself with the many methods of identity theft, you’ll be able to make smarter moves if confronted with any of them.

Spoofing

Perpetrators send through false information to unsuspecting victims in order to get them to divulge personal information.

Phishing and Pharming

Both are methods used to steal personal information from unsuspecting people over the Internet. Phishing typically uses e-mail messages to guide recipients to fake websites where personal information like account passwords are entered. Pharming tampers with the domain-name server system so that traffic to a website is redirected to a different site in the background.

Vishing and Smishing

Vishing involves a direct phone call from someone claiming to be from your bank. The caller requests personal information and uses it for fraudulent activity. Smishing is a similar method using text messages.

Skimming

Perpetrators obtain credit/debit card information from victims during a transaction, either at a merchant such as a restaurant or shop with a point of sale terminal or at an ATM. A small electronic skimmer device swipes and stores a victim’s card information from the magnetic strip and a clone of the card is made.

Spyware

This software performs certain actions on a computer generally without the consent of the owner. This is usually through the use of adware or display advertisements that track personal or sensitive information.

If you fall victim to any type of criminal activity on your account, change your PIN and user details immediately and phone the call centre on 0860 11 11 77.

How We Ensure Your Safety

Emails that look legitimate and ask you to update security features or reactivate your account are far from that. Links from those emails take you to a website that looks like the actual bank’s website, where you’re instructed to enter sensitive security information.

So what is Bidvest Bank doing to avoid you being phished?

Once we receive information regarding these fake websites, the necessary steps are taken to shut these websites down.

When doing online banking, you are requested to enter your unique username, password and PIN as well as a security code that will differ every time. Our internet banking site also warns clients to never follow a link to access internet banking.

You’re notified of these banking activities via SMS or email that will alert you to any unauthorised actions:

Log ins
Password changes
PIN changes
Beneficiary changes
Personal details
Beneficiary payments
Recurring payments
Inter-account transfers
Deposits
Withdrawals
Recurring payment expiry

Scams

Deposit Scam

A perpetrator orders goods and makes payment into the seller’s account, usually with a fraudulent cheque. The goods are delivered before the cheque is cleared or validated.

Refund Scam

You apparently receive funds in your account larger than expected, usually by fraudulent cheque. The perpetrator then sends a false payment confirmation and requests you to refund the amount into their account.

Romance Scam

Victims are targeted via chat rooms or online dating services. They gain the victim’s trust then take advantage to exploit them.

Lottery or Lucky Draw Scam

Claim: You’ve won a specific amount of money. You get instructions on how to claim, and are told to pay ‘processing fees’ or ‘transfer charges’ before your so-called winnings can be sent. But they don’t stop and you never receive any money in return.

Inheritance Scam

Claim: An email from a ‘lawyer’ names you as a beneficiary of a fortune from a rich relative. You are required to contact the lawyer or law firm to confirm your identity, then to pay certain expenses to have the money released.

Work-from-Home Scam

Claim: You can work from home and make extra money usually between R10,000.00 and R20,000.00 filling envelopes.

On response, you’re requested to pay a fee for the postage of these envelopes etc. to be sent to you. More fees accumulate and no envelopes are sent.

Rich-Person-in-Need Scam

Claim: You must act as a guardian to recover someone’s wealth whereby you’ll receive a large sum of money for your service.

Rich Investor Scam

Claim: A wealthy person wishing to invest in your country but cannot do so without your help.

Rich Philanthropist Scam

Claim: A wealthy dying person with no one to leave his fortune to and would like to donate his money to the underprivileged.

Charity Scam

Claim: A charitable organization seeking donations for their cause.

Claim: Critical illness seeking funds to help to pay for surgery or treatment.

ATM Card Scam

Claim: There is money waiting for you in a bank account for which the scammer holds the ATM card, and you must pay transport fees and taxes.

Employment Scam

Claim: Recruitment firm or employer offering attractive opportunities.

On response, you have to pay fees for visa applications or travel expenses in advance to qualify.

Overpayment/Auction Scam

Claim: An item was purchased on a classified ad site of which an overpayment was made in error.

The ‘payment’ was made with a fake cheque or money order. The seller is told to refund the buyer via EFT.

Property Scam

Claim: Affordable and enticing prices for vacation and retirement villages.

On response, you’re requested to pay a deposit in advance to secure the investment.

Email Password Scam

Claim: Your email details must be updated to avoid being shut down.

When you respond, hackers acquire your address and password and send out a plea to your contacts to send you money because you’re in trouble.

Change of Banking Details Scam

Claim: The SARS/municipal service/other banking details have changed and all further payments must be made to a new account.

Always check that this is a legitimate claim before making payments.

419 Scam

Claim: Money is trapped in central banks during civil wars or coups.

Claim: Massive inheritance difficult to access because of government restrictions or taxes in the country.

Scam Prevention Guidelines

Do all relevant checks to make sure everything is legitimate and follow these guidelines:

Do not pay any money over to any individual you do not know who asks for advice or assistance.
If a cheque is deposited into your account and you receive a request to return funds due to an overpayment, wait for the cheque to clear first to ensure the cheque is not fraudulent.
If you receive any sort of documentation or request supposedly from financial institutions, follow up with them before releasing any funds to ensure the document is genuine.

Do not let anyone pressure you into making decisions about money or investments - always get independent financial advice.
Do not open suspicious or unsolicited emails - delete them.
Never reply to spam email (even to unsubscribe).
Never send your personal details, credit card or online account details through an email, or to someone you don’t know.
Money laundering is a criminal offence. Do not agree to transfer money for someone else.
Ask yourself: Why would this person choose me to help them?
If you still think a letter may be genuine, make sure you seek the advice of an independent professional (lawyer, accountant or financial planner) before committing any money.
If you have received a scam offer, report the matter to your bank immediately and spread the word.

Remember:

There are no get-rich-quick schemes: the only people who make money are the scammers.
If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Security Information