BNZ’s head of financial crime, Ashley Kai Fong, says the most notable change in scam activity over the past year was the increased volume.
In the last year, BNZ found four out of every five people had been targeted by a scam and more than a quarter had fallen victim to one, up 7% the year prior.
It found that 47% of businesses had been a victim in the last year, up from 21% the year before.
“Scams are rising, year-on-year, and as they climb, so does the toll on New Zealanders and the trail of destruction left in the wake,” says Kai Fong.
“Scams don’t just damage our finances. They cause hurt, shame, and embarrassment to their victims and they erode trust and confidence in brands, businesses, and organisations.”
In one scam that the bank dealt with recently, a customer fell victim to a recovery scam multiple times.
A recovery scam is where a scammer steals money then poses as a bank or police to help recover it.
The first scam was an investment scam. The customer had been watching investment YouTube videos and followed a link to speak to someone who advised them on a cryptocurrency investment. But there was no investment and the customer lost almost $90,000.
When the scam was discovered, BNZ changed the customer’s passwords and details and secured the account. But then someone pretending to be an investigator from a cryptocurrency company offered to help recover the money. They obtained access to the customer’s online banking and stole more money.
BNZ secured the account again and told the cus ..
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