80-Year-Old Woman Lost Her Savings Despite Not Using Online Banking At All
The senior citizen was left with RM19 in her bank account.
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An 80-year-old woman was shocked to find only RM19 left in her account when she went to the bank to withdraw money.
The woman’s son, Azleen Abdul Rahim, shared the incident on social media.
The posting was widely shared, as many netizens had a similar experience.
Last 2 weeks my colleagues lost her savings total RM18k from Maybank. Left balance RM9. Didn't click any link, never receive any tac no, didn't share her user id and password to anyone even though her own husband. Keep money in the bank not safe, keep in house also not safe. 😓
— Divager's Sister Forever (@DeathIsSure2810) October 24, 2022
Azleen emphasized that although his mother’s bank account had a debit card, it was only used to withdraw money.
There was no e-banking set up, and no e-wallet or online shopping platform linked to the account.
Therefore, he did not understand how the money was stolen.
The man said that when his mother went to the bank to withdraw money a few days ago, she found that her account had insufficient balance.
The original five-figure deposit was reduced to only RM19, and the mother had not received any notice in advance.
After we asked customer service, we learned that my mother’s deposit was transferred through online transactions. My mother’s bank account was not set up with e-banking, nor was it bound to e-banking or other online trading platforms, and she had never received any bank SMS notification.
The woman’s son, Azleen Abdul Rahim, on why the loss was so shocking.
Upon further checking, the bank told Azleen’s mother that there were some unknown transactions for e-wallets and online shopping.
At the same time, he also thanked the bank for being helpful.
They've walked through every single transaction and explained to her slowly about this incident. Tomorrow, after her 2nd session with the Bank Islam team to conclude the investigation at the bank level, she will lodge a police report and leave this matter to the police.
— Azleen Abdul Rahim (@azleenabdrahim_) October 25, 2022
Some netizens expressed their views that others may have set up online banking for the account without the man or his mother knowing.
If it is an online transaction, others may have set her account up as electronic banking to obtain the TAC code.
Netizens said that as long as anyone got hold of the senior citizen’s debit card and PIN code, they could update the mobile phone number on the ATM, set up an electronic bank, and obtain the TAC code for online transfer.
Azleen said he had contacted the bank for further information and would report to the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) so that the authorities would investigate.
Scammers always have ways to trick you. Be careful with ads on social media. It may be a scam that can lead to theft of personal information and loss of money!
— Bank Negara Malaysia (@BNM_official) October 21, 2022
If in doubt, call your bank or the National Scam Response Center (NSRC) 997 hotline ☎️#AmaranScam #PenipuanKewangan pic.twitter.com/bcwaTGzPf9
Why Is Online Scam Increasing?
Today, fraud has also accelerated and grown even more sophisticated due to the rise of e-commerce, mobile payments, and computing power.
Many of the same technologies that companies rely on to innovate and rapidly introduce new products and services are also being adopted by fraudsters.
READ MORE: More Than RM1.6 Billion Lost To Online Scams Between 2019 And 2021, Says Deputy Minister
The easiest way to become a victim of a bank scam is to share your banking info – such as account numbers, PIN codes and TAC – with someone you don’t know well and trust.
If someone asks for sensitive banking details, proceed with caution.
READ MORE: [Watch] Malaysian Holidaygoer Loses RM28,500, Allegedly Scammed By Online Travel Agency
If the internet connection isn’t secure, and you log in to an unencrypted site — or a site that uses encryption only on the sign-in page — other users on the network can see what you see and send.
They could hijack your session and log in as you.
Public Wi-Fi allow hackers to position themselves between the users and the access point.
— LGMS (@MyLGMS) October 20, 2022
It allows them to potentially get access to sensitive info sent out by the users – online acc passwords, credit card info, important personal credentials and other sensitive info. 💳🔐 pic.twitter.com/jNtI1KAO8V
If you think this has happened to you, contact your bank immediately to let them know what’s happened and ask if you can get a refund.
Chances are, banks would not reimburse you if you’ve transferred money to someone because of a scam.
Nevertheless, banks have been facing increasing pressure to improve their security.
Over the last month, we have received multiple complaints from victims of online banking scams.
— Charles Santiago (@mpklang) September 19, 2022
Today, we have sent out a letter to the Association of Banks in Malaysia requesting them to provide more countermeasures against bank-related cyber scams. pic.twitter.com/ukUwnGb8yg
As such, government agencies such as the newly created NSRC would be a good option for you to potentially recover money from a scammer.
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