'If you don't click on this link and update KYC, bank account will be blocked': New APK fraud scam could cost you lakhs, how to prevent
Punjab and Sind Bank (PSB) has cautioned its customers about an ongoing scam in the bank's name. The bank said that it is important for you to know about the scam to keep your money safe from the scamsters. This scam (APK file scam) starts with you receiving a fake message supposedly from the bank informing that your bank account will be blocked due to a KYC update. However, in reality, no such message has ever been sent by the bank, and neither is your KYC going to expire.
«They are asking customers to download APK files loaded with malware to steal account and personal information,» Punjab and Sind Bank said in the notice.
So how exactly does the scam happen? And what false narratives do the fraudsters create to lure you into following their call to action? Read below to know more about this and be alert.
How APK scam happens
The APK scam happens in three steps:
Step 1: Creating a false narrative to create panic
Step 2: Make you download a malicious APK file and install it
UPI, IMPS, retail payments of some banks temporarily unavailable due to ransomware attack on tech-provider
Step 3: Perform fraudulent activities like installing a keylogger (a keylogger can see every keystroke you click on the mobile keyboard), launch a ransomware attack, or access the clipboard.
Step 1: The false narrative
According to Kaushik Ray, Chief Operating Officer (COO), of Whizhack Technologies, scamsters first send an SMS that looks like an SMS being sent by a bank — the tone and language of such a scam SMSes
