cover covidscams 1400x788 1

How to protect your bank account from scams and fraud

DON’T FALL FOR IT, BUDDY

We’re living in difficult economic times, and we understand how you might fall for this type of scam. If it’s too good to be true, it probably is. So, to protect your money from scammers, and here’s what you should know.

How scammers work

Scammers will go to great lengths to get your personal and banking details to scam you of your money. They’ll set up fake social media profiles, befriend you, track you, promise you the world, and may even pretend to be your bank or cellphone provider – all of this to make sure they know everything about you and get you to trust them.

How TymeBank protects you from scammers

We’ve got you!

As a digital-first bank, TymeBank has every layer of protection possible in place to keep your bank account safe. That’s why scammers will go to such great lengths to access your bank account details, logins, and bank cards – they need that information to access your account.

We’ve got you covered from a technology perspective, but safeguard your PIN, password, and other unique means of identification such as your ID number to protect your account and prevent potential fraud.

Tips to protect yourself from scams

1. Trust your gut

If something looks too good to be true, it usually is. Scrutinize what’s being offered to you and check whether it makes financial sense. Investing R500 today and receiving it as R8000 in 3 days is mostly impossible.

2. Take your time to make a decision

If you feel rushed to make a decision, then don’t. Scammers are always looking to make a quick buck, and they’ll push you to make a decision. In such instances, stall – ask questions, do your research and be 100% sure you’re making the right decision.

3. Stick to well-known sites

Make sure the website you’re clicking on has one of the below:

  • Make sure there’s a padlock symbol in the address bar right next to the website address.
  • The website address should start with https://. The ‘S’ stands for secure.

4. Guard your personal and banking details

Scammers are willing to do anything to get their hands on your personal and banking information e.g., they can open accounts, access your banking details etc. So, you need to protect your information because that’s your livelihood you’re putting on the line, and that means not dishing out your information willy-nilly to anyone, especially to people over the phone, WhatsApp or social media.

What to do if you think you’ve been scammed

If you think that your banking details might be in the hands of scammers, contact us immediately on 0860 999 119 to block your bank account or deactivate your digital banking profile. If someone calls you claiming to be from the bank, rather end the call and contact our customer care line to verify that it is legit.

TymeBank is serious about security. We also recommend that you make all EFT payments via your TymeBank app as it’s a safer option than carrying large amounts of cash when purchasing goods from strangers. Please regularly check your bank statements to ensure there’s no suspicious activity on your account, and contact us immediately if you’re unsure about a transaction.