“She sounded so sincere,” says John Klopstra (54) from Groningen. A ‘fake call from the bank’ cost him 4700 euros.
De Stadjer fell for a tried-and-true scam in the Netherlands. Little consolation: he is certainly not the only one. According to the Fraud Helpdesk, scammers made (at least) 184 victims last year by posing as a bank employee who indicates imminent fraud. The loot: 5.1 million euros.
“The fraudsters often have inside information, know full names, age and bank balance. This makes them appear very convincing and bank customers think they are dealing with an employee,” said spokesperson Tanya Wijngaarde of the Fraud Helpdesk.
“Do you get a call like that? Then you most likely have contact with a criminal. Hang up, click away, call your bank and verify the story,” says a spokesperson for the SNS Bank.
De Volksbank (SNS, ASN Bank and RegioBank) even offers free online training to help customers identify these criminal practices as a preventive measure: identify the scammer. But perhaps it is wiser not to trust unknown callers at all?