As technology advances, scams have become more pervasive and can strike anytime, anywhere.
With fraudsters always lurking nearby, staying informed about anti-fraud knowledge has never been more important.
Lift the lid, expose the trick. Reveal the scammer’s disguise and shady tactics. Stay alert, spot the red flags and steer clear of their trips.
Not all sweets are harmless. Scammers prey on the desire to make quick money, using flashy “investment tips” to lure victims in. Don’t fall for it – explore our two “candies” to learn how to dodge these investment scams.
Think twice before you tap. Scams in digital payments are on the rise. Stay vigilant, protect your personal data, and always verify before you transfer.
Deepfake videos can be incredibly convincing. Never trust audio or video messages blindly. When in doubt, contact the person directly to verify their identity and information.
Don’t click suspicious links! Always verify recipient accounts before transferring money. Never share one-time passwords or verification codes. Use the Scameter App to identify suspicious calls and websites.
Government departments will never request your bank info or ask for payments over the phone. Always check the sender’s name with a ‘#’ prefix. When in doubt, contact the official department to verify.
The ‘investment expert’ praising you might just be baiting you. Avoid acting on so-called tips or insider info. Never open accounts or deposit money through unknown platforms. Always verify firms via the SFC website.
No such thing as guaranteed wins – be cautious of sugar-coated scams! Scammers may tempt you with ‘low risk, high return’ promises. Avoid paying upfront fees or deposits. Check the SFC website to confirm if an investment firm is licensed or registered.
Real or fake? Hard to tell online! If someone asks for payment to verify your identity, that’s a red flag! Use the FPS Scam Warning Indicator to stay alert to high-risk accounts. Double-check SMS details – don’t tap links impulsively!
A ‘customer service rep’ asking you to transfer money to cancel auto-pay? Be cautious! Never share your OTPs or verification codes – your private info could be at risk!
Caught in the claws of fake merchants? When in doubt, verify through official channels! Use the Scameter App to scan and reveal scammers instantly – no place for them to hide!
Cyber criminals often use social networks to gather your personal information, though social skills to win your trust and trick you into sending money or disclosing sensitive information.
Fraudster pretends to be government officials, organizations or someone you trust to convince you to send them money or disclose your personal or account information.
Phishing, as a form of social engineering, is a cyber crime where fraudsters try to obtain your personal information by email. Fraudster may also contact you through messaging apps, SMS or phone calls.
Malware is an intrusive programme installed on your computer or smartphone, often without your knowledge or permission.
Cyber criminals often employ the use of social networks to gather your personal information. Utilizing social skills, they will attempt to win your trust and trick you into sending money or disclosing sensitive information.
Fraudsters commonly use fake phone calls, text messages and emails impersonating government officials and organizations convincing you to give them sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details. Check out below for more information on different forms of social engineering.
There are many kinds of impersonation scams but they all work the same way: a scammer pretends to be legitimate government agencies, organizations or someone you trust to convince you to send them money or disclose sensitive information. Here are some types of scams that you should be aware of to better protect yourself.
What to watch out for:
What you can do:
Phishing, a form of social engineering, is a cyber crime where fraudsters try to obtain your personal information by email. Fraudster may also contact you through messaging apps, SMS or phone calls. The information can be used for identity theft, payment scams and credit card fraud as well as many other forms of cybercrime. Malicious links or attachments are often included in phishing and vishing messages, designed to steal your information or infect your system with malware (malicious software).
Watch out for cybercriminal! Here are the recent SMS Phishing attacks:
 |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
The above Phishing SMS messages make you feel suspicious and confused, which induce you to reply via hyperlinks. Never reply or click on any link in this type of SMS message. Clicking on the link or replying to this message could:
Five common characteristics of phishing messages:
Short for ‘malicious software’, malware is an intrusive programme installed on your computer or smartphone, often without your knowledge or permission. Once installed, it enables cyber criminals to commit fraud, like steal your banking credentials, run payment scams or hijack your system for a ransom.
Understand the common types of malware
Visit the sites below to learn how to protect yourself
Scameter is the one-stop search engine, enter the platform to assess the risk of fraud and cyber security when you encounter suspicious calls, online sellers, job ads, etc.,
More smart tips provided by the HKMA against phishing SMS and Emails, and credit card scams.
Get latest scam alerts from ADCC.
We provide SMS, push notification and email alerts to notify you when important information changes or transactions are made using your account.
Banking systems and transactions are continuously monitored by our security team to detect and respond to any threats or risks.
Accounts are protected by a cooling-off period
If you have any doubt with the payee details, or receive the alert message flagging the payee’s information as “High Risk” when making the transaction instruction, click here.
We manage the banking system with technical expert and advance technology to protect your online security.
After SC Mobile Key registration or re-registration and initiating identified high risk instructions (e.g. add new payee, fund / payment transfer, increase transfer limit, etc), your Digital Banking account may be suspended due to security reason. Please call our hotline 2886-8862 for identity verification. The bank will re-activate your Digital Banking account after verification, and you could re-initiate the instruction thereafter.
Click HERE to visit Scameter website of the Hong Kong Police Force.
As there is an increasing trend of fraud cases related to payments, remember to double check the transaction details and the payee is trustworthy before you proceed with the transaction.
If you have any doubt with the payee details, or receive the alert message flagging the payee’s information as “High Risk” when making the transaction instruction, you can visit the Scameter website of the Hong Kong Police Force to learn more.
To further enhance the ability of the Suspicious Account Alert in protecting our clients from fraud, a new 10 second countdown for “High Risk” alert will be added to the “Proceed” button whereby client must wait until the countdown reaches 0 before they can press “Proceed” to continue with the transaction.
Scameter is the one-stop search engine provided by the Police Force to help the public identify frauds and online pitfalls. When you encounter suspicious calls, online sellers, friend requests, job ads, investment websites, etc., you can enter the platform account name or number, payment account, phone number, email address, URL, etc. to assess the risk of fraud and cyber security.
Using SC Mobile key can enhance security by preventing SMS interception.
Always be careful about sharing personal information.
Regularly updating the apps and anti-virus software, and always logging out, helps keep you safe.
A strong password can keep your personal information safe and deter cyber criminals.
Remember to browse in a safe environment
More safety tips for you
Using Money Safe to protect your account funds
Money Safe is the latest anti-fraud and scam security feature introduced by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). You can now choose to activate Money Safe for all types of Current and Saving account to better protect your funds.
Once activated, the account cannot be used for any types of outgoing payment & transfer transactions via any channels, including but not limited to:
In the unlucky event that you are being scammed, your funds will remain safe.
As you will not be able to withdraw the funds in your account until you deactivate Money Safe, do ensure you maintain sufficient funds for daily and ad hoc use.
How can I activate Money Safe?
How can I de-activate Money safe?
Have questions ? Click here to check out the Frequently Asked Questions.
Remember, Standard Chartered will neither never request for your password or security information by phone call, email or SMS., nor do we notify anyone of account irregularities through pre-recorded voice messages. Also, we would not include hyperlinks in our communications (e.g. SMS or email) requesting you to log in to Online or Mobile Banking.
