OMAHA, Neb.—Everything is going mobile, and that now includes financial fraud.
An old check-cashing scam has taken on new life as the result of new mobile banking apps. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) that serves a region that includes Nebraska, South Dakota, the Kansas Plains and Southwest Iowa is warning consumers that scammers are using mobile banking apps to trick unsuspecting consumers into sharing their bank apps.
According to the BBB, the scam works this way. An acquaintance approaches an individual and offers to pay several hundred dollars (or more) if the individual will accept money for them through for their bank or credit union account. The scammer may approach the would-be victim in person or though social media, and/or may also pose as a potential employer or lender who needs access to the consumer’s account to deposit money. Once the consumer gives the scammer their bank/CU account number, PIN and contact information, they often next receive a phone call/e-mail from their bank/CU indicating that a check deposited into the consumers account has not cleared, and the account is now overdrawn.
The BBB said the scam involves the fraudster using a mobile app from the victim’s bank/CU to deposit fake checks into the consumer’s account; then the scammer withdraws the cash before the financial institution identifies the fake transaction.
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