The scenario is always the same and very quickly gives victims confidence.
This is the most popular scam in recent months and, certainly, the most worrying. In one year, 15% additional victims recorded, after, already, an increase of 80% between 2022 and 2023. It must be said that the story is well rehearsed, the process perfectly oiled and distrust thus vanished. But afterwards, all that’s left is the eyes to cry in front of an empty bank account.
Marc, Catherine, Thierry (assumed first names) were all victims a few weeks ago. And they are not alone: a former anti-terrorism judge was also wronged, as were many stars. Many other individuals were also trapped. The scam is all the more difficult to digest for the defrauded people since it is they themselves who provided the thugs with access to their finances.
The process is always the same: initially, a fake SMS of a fine, parcel, health card or other, with a link asking to pay. Some people get tricked and enter their bank card details, thinking about paying a fine, rescheduling a delivery or renewing their vital card. However, these codes fall into the hands of scammers.
The latter call almost immediately to “warn” that a fraudulent transaction has been carried out on their account. The thug pretends to be an employee of the bank’s anti-fraud department. During the conversation, either a link redirecting to a fake bank connection site is sent, or access codes are requested over the phone. In both cases, the scammer manages to access all the accounts, claiming security operations.
The height of cunning, the scammers even say they send someone to the home to collect the bank card so that it can be destroyed safely. This is in reality used to empty the accounts: from 5,300 to 200,000 euros, according to the main stories this year.
Money theft by fake bank advisors is rampant. “It’s a phenomenon captured by a small delinquency because it doesn’t require technical skills. It just requires bullshit. There is a team making a fake bank site, a carbon copy of yours, a team doing the phishing, a team responsible for calling the person, pretending to be an advisor from the anti-fraud service to obtain a code validating an operation”, tells us Jean-Jacques Latour, cybersecurity expertise director at Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr .
If all the victims blame themselves for having been fooled, they all explain that they easily fell into the trap because the interlocutor easily establishes a climate of seriousness. “A man introduced himself and said to me: ‘Hello, this is the anti-fraud department of Société Générale. We would like to warn you that there have been attempts to fraudulently debit your account in the amount of 700 euros ‘When he told me that, I didn’t think…’, one of them admitted to the Point. A blind trust that is ultimately fatal.