Warning to Natwest Customers or any bank customers

xlnc99

Funny story, maybe a coincidence or maybe not, but ive applied to alot of banks recently. I just received a text message which word for word goes like this:

Your Internet Banking has been disabled for security reasons. To unlock your account please visit the secure link (i cannot post one because i am a newish member)

On the message sender it said Natwest. No number, just Natwest showing up as contact info.

Now luckily for me i dont have a Natwest account so i knew straight away this was a scam text. But had i had one, i was just thinking i may have actually followed the link because it looked genuine. Everytime i get messages from my banks it shows up the same, with their company info and no number. How are we meant to tell the difference?

This is worrying times for us all, so be careful and vigilant. My second point is, could this be done via someone who has my personal details working for one of the banks ive been applying too? Never had a message like this before.

xlnc99

the link they sent was http followed by numbers 193.33.61.21

Never been a victim of scams like this before, so concerned now

elsien

They can fake the number the texts come from.
The same text will have gone to many many other people, and the numbers are probably guessed/computer generated. It's just another variant on the phishing email scams that have been around for years - if it was individually targeted it would have more personal information, not a generic text from the wrong bank.
Same rules apply; don't click on links and don't use the contact numbers they give you. Contact your bank via the numbers on your bank statements if you are concerned.

xlnc99

yes i have read all that stuff but never happend to me before.

The reason its a shock is because ive been receiving various legit texts like this from different banks over the past few days. So had Natwest been one of my banks i wouldnt have batted an eye lid. Emails are different, u can tell they are scams straight away because of the email address and other clues. With this, only the bank name comes up with no contact info. That is exactly how banks text.

londoninvestor

elsien wrote: »

Same rules apply; don't click on links and don't use the contact numbers they give you. Contact your bank via the numbers on your bank statements if you are concerned.

Exactly, golden rule - always use a URL or phone number you've verified independently.

xlnc99

i have never ever been a victim to fraud like this in my life with banks. U do hear horror stories and more often then not u think how silly the customer was for giving their details etc. On this occasion they have upped their game. The text says your bank name and ive been getting message like this (legit ones) all week from banks in the same format. Granted the information is different but it a very clever scam. Not one which you would say to a customer 'wow you are really dumb for falling for that'.

My question is, is it a co-incdence that after i start applying for these banks, i suddenly get a text like this. Could be someone inside these banks or processing teams selling my info on.

Be carefull guys

karenccs67

I had the same text tonight, I don’t have a Nat West account so I knew not to go into it.

[Deleted User]

Old news.
Been happening for years - many posts on the subject already.

tempus_fugit

xlnc99 wrote: »

Funny story, maybe a coincidence or maybe not, but ive applied to alot of banks recently. I just received a text message which word for word goes like this:

Your Internet Banking has been disabled for security reasons. To unlock your account please visit the secure link (i cannot post one because i am a newish member)

On the message sender it said Natwest. No number, just Natwest showing up as contact info.

Now luckily for me i dont have a Natwest account so i knew straight away this was a scam text. But had i had one, i was just thinking i may have actually followed the link because it looked genuine. Everytime i get messages from my banks it shows up the same, with their company info and no number. How are we meant to tell the difference?

This is worrying times for us all, so be careful and vigilant. My second point is, could this be done via someone who has my personal details working for one of the banks ive been applying too? Never had a message like this before.

Nope. I got one of these and I do have a Natwest account. I knew it was a scam straightaway and forwarded the text to their fraud department and took no further action. I logged into my account via the normal means and the account was not disabled, as I suspected.

karlie88

elsien wrote: »

They can fake the number the texts come from.
The same text will have gone to many many other people, and the numbers are probably guessed/computer generated. It's just another variant on the phishing email scams that have been around for years - if it was individually targeted it would have more personal information, not a generic text from the wrong bank.
Same rules apply; don't click on links and don't use the contact numbers they give you. Contact your bank via the numbers on your bank statements if you are concerned.

Very good advice.

Unfortunately, there are still some banks that put phone numbers in their texts. I know Barclays and Lloyds bank still put phone numbers in their texts after you set up a new payee/SO.

As always, stick to the number on the back of your debit card or contact them directly via their mobile banking app.

Takmon

xlnc99 wrote: »

i have never ever been a victim to fraud like this in my life with banks. U do hear horror stories and more often then not u think how silly the customer was for giving their details etc. On this occasion they have upped their game. The text says your bank name and ive been getting message like this (legit ones) all week from banks in the same format. Granted the information is different but it a very clever scam. Not one which you would say to a customer 'wow you are really dumb for falling for that'.

My question is, is it a co-incdence that after i start applying for these banks, i suddenly get a text like this. Could be someone inside these banks or processing teams selling my info on.

Be carefull guys

So your saying you have got a legitimate message from a bank that tells you to click on an "unusual" link?, no bank would ever tell you click on a link sent in a text message so that's how you can tell it's a fake message. So pretty obvious really.

When you apply for accounts online it goes through an automated system and nobody actually see's your details as a standard part of process. Even if someone did collect lots of mobile numbers and names to sell on why would the scammers then send it from a bank you don't have an account with.....