The fake bank advisor scam method is gaining ground, according to the Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr platform. In its annual report published Tuesday March 5, the government site for awareness and support for victims of digital crimes estimated that this form of online scam was the “phenomenon of 2023”.
Concretely, scammers spoof the customer service number of the victim’s bank and, thanks to their confident tone and good information, push them to validate online purchases or money transfers. A technique which therefore seems to be gaining ground according to the government platform: in 2023, visits to the web page dedicated to this type of scam have increased by 78% compared to the previous year.
A technique classified in the category of phishing (or phishing): a type of scam in the form of an urgent request for information or money from an apparently legitimate organization. The fake bank advisor has thus become the fifth most viewed phishing scam on the Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr site. However, it remains far behind false fines for traffic or child pornography offenses.
More generally, phishing is the main threat reported in the 282,000 assistance requests received in 2023 by Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr. Calls for help up 13% over one year for individuals. The cause, according to the platform’s report: “A real cybercriminal phishing ecosystem.” “We can really talk about a mafia,” says the general director of Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr, Jérôme Notin.