Here are some best practices to protect yourself from APP fraud:
Stop and think before you pay: The easiest way for fraudsters to get their hands on your money is to simply get you to send it to them.
Conduct your own, independent research on the payee: You can research the company's reputation online by searching for the company's name along with words like "review," "scam," "fraud," or "complaint".
Be cautious of unsolicited messages: Have you received any phone calls, texts, emails, or social media messages, prompting you to make the payment? The fraudster may be posing as a friend, relative, colleague or an individual in a position of authority such as from the fraud department or a government official.
Verify through a trusted channel: Ensure the payee is who they say they are by contacting them through a telephone number or email address you have verified on their official website, or a trusted communication channel such as video call.
Remember, seeing is believing: Have you met the beneficiary in person? Are you confident of their identity? Do you really know them? If you are paying an invoice, have you received the goods or services for which you are making payment? Is the offering unrealistically attractive? If it sounds too good to be true, it is.
Keep a cool head: Fraudsters use urgency, misrepresentation, and emotional manipulation to convince their victims to make payments. DigiDoe will never contact you, asking you to move funds for safekeeping, never ask you to share your screen and never ask for your verification code.
Don't pay alone: Run the payment past someone that you trust, someone completely independent of the payment, for a second opinion.