In the digital age, something as simple as a text message can have devastating consequences.

Harmony Antoinette, a Melbourne resident, learned this the hard way when she lost $40,000 from her bank account in less than an hour.

Her story serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity and the need for constant vigilance in protecting our personal information.

Harmony was relaxing at home when she received a suspicious text message asking for a code. With 14 years of experience in financial services, she was well aware of the potential for scams and decided to contact her bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), directly.

Despite her quick action, it was too late. By the time she got through to the bank, $40,000 had already been withdrawn from her account.

Cybersecurity experts warn Aussies from criminals when donating old electronic devices such as mobile phones. Image: Freepik

'I called CommBank straight away, and within five minutes after getting those notifications my account was supposed to be blocked,' she told a news source.

'The lady I spoke to was lovely and reassuring and told me I had called in time and that the transactions could be reversed because I’d called so quickly, and she was very apologetic.'

‘The notification gave me a prompt to enter a code, but instead of doing that, I just called my bank.’

‘But there were no calls beforehand and no phishing links or cryptocurrency that looked dodgy.’

Harmony was left in shock, with no clear understanding of how this could have happened. She had not clicked on any phishing links or engaged in any suspicious online activities.

The only possible explanation she could think of was that she had recently donated her old phone to an e-waste program in Melbourne.

‘I got another notification that a transaction had been initiated by my wallet ID,’ she said.

‘One was from Catch about a purchase of over $2000 and the other one was from JB Hi-Fi about an attempted purchase they had rejected due to suspected fraud.’

It's believed that a third party was able to access Harmony’s old device and the passcodes registered to her CommBank Tap & Pay, stealing about $40,000 from her account.

Because the transactions were linked to a device associated with her banking profile for three years, they were not flagged as suspicious.

She reported it to the CBA fraud department and she was told that it looked like she had made the purchases.

‘I explained this was not the case,’ she expressed.

‘What motive would I have to make purchases and then state I didn’t?’

Following the incident, Commbank retrieved half of the stolen amount back into her account, but the remaining $20,000, made up of merchant deductions, is still missing.

She has since changed all her personal details online and lodged a complaint with the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

In response to Harmony's case, a CBA spokesperson stated, 'We encourage customers to be vigilant and protect their personal information. Customers should remove the CommBank app and restore a device to its factory settings to erase all your personal data, including any passcodes before disposing of, giving away or selling a device.'

This unfortunate incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity.

Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself from online fraud:

1. Be wary of suspicious text messages or emails: If you receive a message asking for personal information or a code, do not respond. Instead, contact your bank or service provider directly.

2. Secure your devices: Use strong, unique passwords for all your devices and accounts. Enable two-factor authentication where possible.

3. Dispose of old devices safely: Before donating or recycling an old device, make sure to delete all personal data and restore the device to its factory settings. Remove any banking apps and deregister the device from any services.

4. Monitor your accounts: Regularly check your bank and credit card statements for any suspicious activity. If you notice anything unusual, contact your bank immediately.

5. Educate yourself: Stay informed about the latest scams and cybersecurity threats. The more you know, the better you can protect yourself.

By staying vigilant and taking proactive steps to protect personal information, people can help prevent such incidents from happening. If you suspect any scam or fraudulent activities, you can report here.

To know more about scam and online fraudulent activities and incidents, you might also want to consider visiting our Scam Watch forum here.

Key Takeaways

• A Melbourne woman, Harmony Antoinette, lost $40,000 in a scam within minutes of receiving a suspicious text.
• Despite calling her bank immediately upon receiving the text alert, transactions from her account had already occurred.
• After donating her old phone to an e-waste program, Harmony suspects that her personal information might have been compromised.
• While Commonwealth Bank was able to reverse half of the transactions, the other half remains unresolved, and the bank emphasised the importance of erasing personal data from devices before disposing of them.

Have you ever been a victim of a similar scam? Share your experiences and tips for avoiding such situations in the comments below.

 

[ToniaKisliakov]

Well

In the digital age, something as simple as a text message can have devastating consequences.

Harmony Antoinette, a Melbourne resident, learned this the hard way when she lost $40,000 from her bank account in less than an hour.

Her story serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity and the need for constant vigilance in protecting our personal information.

Harmony was relaxing at home when she received a suspicious text message asking for a code. With 14 years of experience in financial services, she was well aware of the potential for scams and decided to contact her bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), directly.

Despite her quick action, it was too late. By the time she got through to the bank, $40,000 had already been withdrawn from her account.

View attachment 37762

Cybersecurity experts warn Aussies from criminals when donating old electronic devices such as mobile phones. Image: Freepik

'I called CommBank straight away, and within five minutes after getting those notifications my account was supposed to be blocked,' she told a news source.

'The lady I spoke to was lovely and reassuring and told me I had called in time and that the transactions could be reversed because I’d called so quickly, and she was very apologetic.'

‘The notification gave me a prompt to enter a code, but instead of doing that, I just called my bank.’

‘But there were no calls beforehand and no phishing links or cryptocurrency that looked dodgy.’

Harmony was left in shock, with no clear understanding of how this could have happened. She had not clicked on any phishing links or engaged in any suspicious online activities.

The only possible explanation she could think of was that she had recently donated her old phone to an e-waste program in Melbourne.

‘I got another notification that a transaction had been initiated by my wallet ID,’ she said.

‘One was from Catch about a purchase of over $2000 and the other one was from JB Hi-Fi about an attempted purchase they had rejected due to suspected fraud.’

It's believed that a third party was able to access Harmony’s old device and the passcodes registered to her CommBank Tap & Pay, stealing about $40,000 from her account.

Because the transactions were linked to a device associated with her banking profile for three years, they were not flagged as suspicious.

She reported it to the CBA fraud department and she was told that it looked like she had made the purchases.

‘I explained this was not the case,’ she expressed.

‘What motive would I have to make purchases and then state I didn’t?’

Following the incident, Commbank retrieved half of the stolen amount back into her account, but the remaining $20,000, made up of merchant deductions, is still missing.

She has since changed all her personal details online and lodged a complaint with the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

In response to Harmony's case, a CBA spokesperson stated, 'We encourage customers to be vigilant and protect their personal information. Customers should remove the CommBank app and restore a device to its factory settings to erase all your personal data, including any passcodes before disposing of, giving away or selling a device.'

This unfortunate incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity.

Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself from online fraud:

1. Be wary of suspicious text messages or emails: If you receive a message asking for personal information or a code, do not respond. Instead, contact your bank or service provider directly.

2. Secure your devices: Use strong, unique passwords for all your devices and accounts. Enable two-factor authentication where possible.

3. Dispose of old devices safely: Before donating or recycling an old device, make sure to delete all personal data and restore the device to its factory settings. Remove any banking apps and deregister the device from any services.

4. Monitor your accounts: Regularly check your bank and credit card statements for any suspicious activity. If you notice anything unusual, contact your bank immediately.

5. Educate yourself: Stay informed about the latest scams and cybersecurity threats. The more you know, the better you can protect yourself.

By staying vigilant and taking proactive steps to protect personal information, people can help prevent such incidents from happening. If you suspect any scam or fraudulent activities, you can report here.

To know more about scam and online fraudulent activities and incidents, you might also want to consider visiting our Scam Watch forum here.

Key Takeaways

• A Melbourne woman, Harmony Antoinette, lost $40,000 in a scam within minutes of receiving a suspicious text.
• Despite calling her bank immediately upon receiving the text alert, transactions from her account had already occurred.
• After donating her old phone to an e-waste program, Harmony suspects that her personal information might have been compromised.
• While Commonwealth Bank was able to reverse half of the transactions, the other half remains unresolved, and the bank emphasised the importance of erasing personal data from devices before disposing of them.

Have you ever been a victim of a similar scam? Share your experiences and tips for avoiding such situations in the comments below.

Everything is now on apps etc , very easy for the scammer to access numbers etc, to this day I refuse to use any banking app or my credit cards to pay from my mobile. Everyone says its safe to do so. Yeah sure until some scammer does it using your codes etc Anything like that is NOT SAFE, no matter what anyone says, I refuse to do everything via my mobile

 

[Mrtnst]

It should be mandatory for financial institutions to seek confirmation from their customers of the validity of old devices wherever a new device is registered with an account.

Many companies apps don't make de-registration of devices easy.

I have 3 bank apps none of them have a 'de-register your device' option on their menus. If the option exists it has an entirely different name and you would have to search through the help systems to find it, which could take a long time.

Pretty poor for an 'essential' option to provent you losing all your money.

 

[BruceC]

In the digital age, something as simple as a text message can have devastating consequences.

Harmony Antoinette, a Melbourne resident, learned this the hard way when she lost $40,000 from her bank account in less than an hour.

Her story serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity and the need for constant vigilance in protecting our personal information.

Harmony was relaxing at home when she received a suspicious text message asking for a code. With 14 years of experience in financial services, she was well aware of the potential for scams and decided to contact her bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), directly.

Despite her quick action, it was too late. By the time she got through to the bank, $40,000 had already been withdrawn from her account.

View attachment 37762

Cybersecurity experts warn Aussies from criminals when donating old electronic devices such as mobile phones. Image: Freepik

'I called CommBank straight away, and within five minutes after getting those notifications my account was supposed to be blocked,' she told a news source.

'The lady I spoke to was lovely and reassuring and told me I had called in time and that the transactions could be reversed because I’d called so quickly, and she was very apologetic.'

‘The notification gave me a prompt to enter a code, but instead of doing that, I just called my bank.’

‘But there were no calls beforehand and no phishing links or cryptocurrency that looked dodgy.’

Harmony was left in shock, with no clear understanding of how this could have happened. She had not clicked on any phishing links or engaged in any suspicious online activities.

The only possible explanation she could think of was that she had recently donated her old phone to an e-waste program in Melbourne.

‘I got another notification that a transaction had been initiated by my wallet ID,’ she said.

‘One was from Catch about a purchase of over $2000 and the other one was from JB Hi-Fi about an attempted purchase they had rejected due to suspected fraud.’

It's believed that a third party was able to access Harmony’s old device and the passcodes registered to her CommBank Tap & Pay, stealing about $40,000 from her account.

Because the transactions were linked to a device associated with her banking profile for three years, they were not flagged as suspicious.

She reported it to the CBA fraud department and she was told that it looked like she had made the purchases.

‘I explained this was not the case,’ she expressed.

‘What motive would I have to make purchases and then state I didn’t?’

Following the incident, Commbank retrieved half of the stolen amount back into her account, but the remaining $20,000, made up of merchant deductions, is still missing.

She has since changed all her personal details online and lodged a complaint with the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

In response to Harmony's case, a CBA spokesperson stated, 'We encourage customers to be vigilant and protect their personal information. Customers should remove the CommBank app and restore a device to its factory settings to erase all your personal data, including any passcodes before disposing of, giving away or selling a device.'

This unfortunate incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity.

Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself from online fraud:

1. Be wary of suspicious text messages or emails: If you receive a message asking for personal information or a code, do not respond. Instead, contact your bank or service provider directly.

2. Secure your devices: Use strong, unique passwords for all your devices and accounts. Enable two-factor authentication where possible.

3. Dispose of old devices safely: Before donating or recycling an old device, make sure to delete all personal data and restore the device to its factory settings. Remove any banking apps and deregister the device from any services.

4. Monitor your accounts: Regularly check your bank and credit card statements for any suspicious activity. If you notice anything unusual, contact your bank immediately.

5. Educate yourself: Stay informed about the latest scams and cybersecurity threats. The more you know, the better you can protect yourself.

By staying vigilant and taking proactive steps to protect personal information, people can help prevent such incidents from happening. If you suspect any scam or fraudulent activities, you can report here.

To know more about scam and online fraudulent activities and incidents, you might also want to consider visiting our Scam Watch forum here.

Key Takeaways

• A Melbourne woman, Harmony Antoinette, lost $40,000 in a scam within minutes of receiving a suspicious text.
• Despite calling her bank immediately upon receiving the text alert, transactions from her account had already occurred.
• After donating her old phone to an e-waste program, Harmony suspects that her personal information might have been compromised.
• While Commonwealth Bank was able to reverse half of the transactions, the other half remains unresolved, and the bank emphasised the importance of erasing personal data from devices before disposing of them.

Have you ever been a victim of a similar scam? Share your experiences and tips for avoiding such situations in the comments below.

Once again it’s not the fault of the Bank.
What person in their right mind would dispose of an old phone before wiping ALL THE DATA and resetting it to factory settings.
Same goes for old computers!
If disposing of an old computer first format the hard drive then remove it and destroy it!

 

[ToniaKisliakov]

It is stupid to use apps to access bank accounts and make payments using app. Sure all the app makers will say its safe etc but scammers are out there in Australia just waiting for you. It really is your choice to bank using an app and using your credit card, do not forget a scammer is waiting for you,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, and if/when caught, usually are released on bail to wait for court appearance
That's justice for you

 

[gamiry]

this should be followed by an item on this mornings news. DON'T INVEST IN ANYTHING ADVERTISED WITH WELL KNOWN PEOPLE'S FACES....eg Ally Langdon, Dick Smith, Liz Hayes. These photos are fake and have nothing to do with the people shown. Many folks have lost thousands of dollars thinking these fakes are to be believed. Don't be sucked in Please These people are just some of those who have spoken up to warn folks of the crap people who are out there.

 

[Mrtnst]

Once again it’s not the fault of the Bank.
What person in their right mind would dispose of an old phone before wiping ALL THE DATA and resetting it to factory settings.
Same goes for old computers!
If disposing of an old computer first format the hard drive then remove it and destroy it!

Not their fault, true.

But they should be proactive in advising their customers how to protect themselves, especially when it's related to their apps.

They are making huge profits 'keeping our money safe', which is what they promised to do when they persuaded the government to allow [force] our employers to give our money to them, instead of us.

Just as they promised to always give us interest on 'our' money.

Factory reset doesn't necessarily delete all loaded apps and certainly doesn't change the IMIE number of the phone. Nor does deleting data actually get rid of it all.

You need to delete all your apps individually and use something like Android Eraser to wipe the freespace before you can be sure that there's nothing to identify you left behind.

Most people are not familiar enough with computer systems to know how to do this.

 

[Zemo]

Lovely pic of a "cyber criminal", all dolled up in the obligatory hoodie, waving a bit of plastic around while handcuffed.
Please tell me -- what does that mean?

 

[ToniaKisliakov]

Its their choice to get scammed frankly by going ahead with the ad. How do you really know what the company is or if fake, just because the ad says so?
If I want to invest, I would only ask a trusted professional like our chartered accountant with whom we have been dealing with for over 35 years, not some adv with Dick Smith etc on it

 

[AlanQ]

It should be mandatory for financial institutions to seek confirmation from their customers of the validity of old devices wherever a new device is registered with an account.

Many companies apps don't make de-registration of devices easy.

I have 3 bank apps none of them have a 'de-register your device' option on their menus. If the option exists it has an entirely different name and you would have to search through the help systems to find it, which could take a long time.

Pretty poor for an 'essential' option to provent you losing all your money.

Not sure it's the banks responsibility. It's the responsibility of the phone owner to make sure THEY reset the phone & do a factory reset to wipe ALL apps from the phone that weren't preloaded. Tap & Go is only available for transactions under $100: so more to her story than is being shown, may have used the same DOB p/w etc, still 100's of 1000's guilty of this.

 

[Squizzy1]

In the digital age, something as simple as a text message can have devastating consequences.

Harmony Antoinette, a Melbourne resident, learned this the hard way when she lost $40,000 from her bank account in less than an hour.

Her story serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity and the need for constant vigilance in protecting our personal information.

Harmony was relaxing at home when she received a suspicious text message asking for a code. With 14 years of experience in financial services, she was well aware of the potential for scams and decided to contact her bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), directly.

Despite her quick action, it was too late. By the time she got through to the bank, $40,000 had already been withdrawn from her account.

View attachment 37762

Cybersecurity experts warn Aussies from criminals when donating old electronic devices such as mobile phones. Image: Freepik

'I called CommBank straight away, and within five minutes after getting those notifications my account was supposed to be blocked,' she told a news source.

'The lady I spoke to was lovely and reassuring and told me I had called in time and that the transactions could be reversed because I’d called so quickly, and she was very apologetic.'

‘The notification gave me a prompt to enter a code, but instead of doing that, I just called my bank.’

‘But there were no calls beforehand and no phishing links or cryptocurrency that looked dodgy.’

Harmony was left in shock, with no clear understanding of how this could have happened. She had not clicked on any phishing links or engaged in any suspicious online activities.

The only possible explanation she could think of was that she had recently donated her old phone to an e-waste program in Melbourne.

‘I got another notification that a transaction had been initiated by my wallet ID,’ she said.

‘One was from Catch about a purchase of over $2000 and the other one was from JB Hi-Fi about an attempted purchase they had rejected due to suspected fraud.’

It's believed that a third party was able to access Harmony’s old device and the passcodes registered to her CommBank Tap & Pay, stealing about $40,000 from her account.

Because the transactions were linked to a device associated with her banking profile for three years, they were not flagged as suspicious.

She reported it to the CBA fraud department and she was told that it looked like she had made the purchases.

‘I explained this was not the case,’ she expressed.

‘What motive would I have to make purchases and then state I didn’t?’

Following the incident, Commbank retrieved half of the stolen amount back into her account, but the remaining $20,000, made up of merchant deductions, is still missing.

She has since changed all her personal details online and lodged a complaint with the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

In response to Harmony's case, a CBA spokesperson stated, 'We encourage customers to be vigilant and protect their personal information. Customers should remove the CommBank app and restore a device to its factory settings to erase all your personal data, including any passcodes before disposing of, giving away or selling a device.'

This unfortunate incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity.

Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself from online fraud:

1. Be wary of suspicious text messages or emails: If you receive a message asking for personal information or a code, do not respond. Instead, contact your bank or service provider directly.

2. Secure your devices: Use strong, unique passwords for all your devices and accounts. Enable two-factor authentication where possible.

3. Dispose of old devices safely: Before donating or recycling an old device, make sure to delete all personal data and restore the device to its factory settings. Remove any banking apps and deregister the device from any services.

4. Monitor your accounts: Regularly check your bank and credit card statements for any suspicious activity. If you notice anything unusual, contact your bank immediately.

5. Educate yourself: Stay informed about the latest scams and cybersecurity threats. The more you know, the better you can protect yourself.

By staying vigilant and taking proactive steps to protect personal information, people can help prevent such incidents from happening. If you suspect any scam or fraudulent activities, you can report here.

To know more about scam and online fraudulent activities and incidents, you might also want to consider visiting our Scam Watch forum here.

Key Takeaways

• A Melbourne woman, Harmony Antoinette, lost $40,000 in a scam within minutes of receiving a suspicious text.
• Despite calling her bank immediately upon receiving the text alert, transactions from her account had already occurred.
• After donating her old phone to an e-waste program, Harmony suspects that her personal information might have been compromised.
• While Commonwealth Bank was able to reverse half of the transactions, the other half remains unresolved, and the bank emphasised the importance of erasing personal data from devices before disposing of them.

Have you ever been a victim of a similar scam? Share your experiences and tips for avoiding such situations in the comments below.

Seems to me this cashless and internet banking/paying ideology pushed by the financial industry is fraught with traps, and full responsibility should fall on those providing it, particularly now the RBA is suggesting having to pay for using cash.

 

[rehandra]

In the digital age, something as simple as a text message can have devastating consequences.

Harmony Antoinette, a Melbourne resident, learned this the hard way when she lost $40,000 from her bank account in less than an hour.

Her story serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity and the need for constant vigilance in protecting our personal information.

Harmony was relaxing at home when she received a suspicious text message asking for a code. With 14 years of experience in financial services, she was well aware of the potential for scams and decided to contact her bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), directly.

Despite her quick action, it was too late. By the time she got through to the bank, $40,000 had already been withdrawn from her account.

View attachment 37762

Cybersecurity experts warn Aussies from criminals when donating old electronic devices such as mobile phones. Image: Freepik

'I called CommBank straight away, and within five minutes after getting those notifications my account was supposed to be blocked,' she told a news source.

'The lady I spoke to was lovely and reassuring and told me I had called in time and that the transactions could be reversed because I’d called so quickly, and she was very apologetic.'

‘The notification gave me a prompt to enter a code, but instead of doing that, I just called my bank.’

‘But there were no calls beforehand and no phishing links or cryptocurrency that looked dodgy.’

Harmony was left in shock, with no clear understanding of how this could have happened. She had not clicked on any phishing links or engaged in any suspicious online activities.

The only possible explanation she could think of was that she had recently donated her old phone to an e-waste program in Melbourne.

‘I got another notification that a transaction had been initiated by my wallet ID,’ she said.

‘One was from Catch about a purchase of over $2000 and the other one was from JB Hi-Fi about an attempted purchase they had rejected due to suspected fraud.’

It's believed that a third party was able to access Harmony’s old device and the passcodes registered to her CommBank Tap & Pay, stealing about $40,000 from her account.

Because the transactions were linked to a device associated with her banking profile for three years, they were not flagged as suspicious.

She reported it to the CBA fraud department and she was told that it looked like she had made the purchases.

‘I explained this was not the case,’ she expressed.

‘What motive would I have to make purchases and then state I didn’t?’

Following the incident, Commbank retrieved half of the stolen amount back into her account, but the remaining $20,000, made up of merchant deductions, is still missing.

She has since changed all her personal details online and lodged a complaint with the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

In response to Harmony's case, a CBA spokesperson stated, 'We encourage customers to be vigilant and protect their personal information. Customers should remove the CommBank app and restore a device to its factory settings to erase all your personal data, including any passcodes before disposing of, giving away or selling a device.'

This unfortunate incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of cybersecurity.

Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself from online fraud:

1. Be wary of suspicious text messages or emails: If you receive a message asking for personal information or a code, do not respond. Instead, contact your bank or service provider directly.

2. Secure your devices: Use strong, unique passwords for all your devices and accounts. Enable two-factor authentication where possible.

3. Dispose of old devices safely: Before donating or recycling an old device, make sure to delete all personal data and restore the device to its factory settings. Remove any banking apps and deregister the device from any services.

4. Monitor your accounts: Regularly check your bank and credit card statements for any suspicious activity. If you notice anything unusual, contact your bank immediately.

5. Educate yourself: Stay informed about the latest scams and cybersecurity threats. The more you know, the better you can protect yourself.

By staying vigilant and taking proactive steps to protect personal information, people can help prevent such incidents from happening. If you suspect any scam or fraudulent activities, you can report here.

To know more about scam and online fraudulent activities and incidents, you might also want to consider visiting our Scam Watch forum here.

Key Takeaways

• A Melbourne woman, Harmony Antoinette, lost $40,000 in a scam within minutes of receiving a suspicious text.
• Despite calling her bank immediately upon receiving the text alert, transactions from her account had already occurred.
• After donating her old phone to an e-waste program, Harmony suspects that her personal information might have been compromised.
• While Commonwealth Bank was able to reverse half of the transactions, the other half remains unresolved, and the bank emphasised the importance of erasing personal data from devices before disposing of them.

Have you ever been a victim of a similar scam? Share your experiences and tips for avoiding such situations in the comments below.

So despite being aware of scams she obviously handed over the information asked for and only afterwards did she ring the bank. I honestly have no sympathy any more. The banks say time and time again they do not ask for your pin number etc. When are people going to use the commonsense they were born with?

 

[AlanQ]

Seems to me this cashless and internet banking/paying ideology pushed by the financial industry is fraught with traps, and full responsibility should fall on those providing it, particularly now the RBA is suggesting having to pay for using cash.

The RBA isn't suggesting pay to use cash, it's the exact opposite, the recent interview the Governor: "If businesses started charging people to use cash, I suspect there would be a very big backlash". The RBA has stated many times that businesses have a legal obligation to accept cash (limited to 10 x of any denomination). But also is on record that if a business didn't accept her cash she wouldn't be buying there, simple as that.

 

[gamiry]

Well

Everything is now on apps etc , very easy for the scammer to access numbers etc, to this day I refuse to use any banking app or my credit cards to pay from my mobile. Everyone says its safe to do so. Yeah sure until some scammer does it using your codes etc Anything like that is NOT SAFE, no matter what anyone says, I refuse to do everything via my mobile

i don't even own a mobile phone

 

[kerrikennel]

Why would you not factory reset a phone you were disposing of?

 

[Bridgit]

So despite being aware of scams she obviously handed over the information asked for and only afterwards did she ring the bank. I honestly have no sympathy any more. The banks say time and time again they do not ask for your pin number etc. When are people going to use the commonsense they were born with?

No she didn't - she rang her bank immediately!

 

[bluetang]

Seems to me this cashless and internet banking/paying ideology pushed by the financial industry is fraught with traps, and full responsibility should fall on those providing it, particularly now the RBA is suggesting having to pay for using cash.

And now drivers licenses on phones. DON''T LOSE YOUR PHONE

 

[Petra]

A lot of people here, that replied, can open their own cyber security business. They know it all ...... lol

 

[BruceC]

Not their fault, true.

But they should be proactive in advising their customers how to protect themselves, especially when it's related to their apps.

They are making huge profits 'keeping our money safe', which is what they promised to do when they persuaded the government to allow [force] our employers to give our money to them, instead of us.

Just as they promised to always give us interest on 'our' money.

Factory reset doesn't necessarily delete all loaded apps and certainly doesn't change the IMIE number of the phone. Nor does deleting data actually get rid of it all.

You need to delete all your apps individually and use something like Android Eraser to wipe the freespace before you can be sure that there's nothing to identify you left behind.

Most people are not familiar enough with computer systems to know how to do this.

Dr Google will help!
It‘s not that difficult.
As far as the computer goes it’s easy to remove the hard drive.
Dismantle the hard drive (bit harder) then destroy the disc.
You also end up with a couple of super strong magnets!

 

[BruceC]

It is stupid to use apps to access bank accounts and make payments using app. Sure all the app makers will say its safe etc but scammers are out there in Australia just waiting for you. It really is your choice to bank using an app and using your credit card, do not forget a scammer is waiting for you,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, and if/when caught, usually are released on bail to wait for court appearance
That's justice for you

Very true but guess what!
in a couple of years time you will only be able to do on-line banking via apps as it was predicted on the news last night that Australia will be a cashless society within a couple of years!