Victim of a data breach? Here's what you need to know
The Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS) has urged South Africans should be extra vigilant amid the massive Experian data breach.
The consumer, business and credit information services agency encountered a security breach in July, compromising the personal information of millions of South Africans.
More than 24 million South Africans and close to 800 000 businesses are believed to be affected by the breach.
CEO of SAFPS Manie van Schalkwyk says consumers need to be wary of anyone trying to solicit any banking information via the phone.
“Fraudsters will phone you and they will tell you that they are calling you from the bank and that there’s a big debit order from your account that needs to be stopped. And then they will try to give you some confidence that they are calling from the bank and give you information about you like your telephone number, where you work and email address.
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“By giving you that information you kind of feel that the person is from the bank. And then they start asking questions, eliciting more questions from you to say provide us with your bank account details. My system has just gone off. I know I am not supposed to ask you but please give me your PIN number for me to stop it."
Van Schalkwyk says consumers who are targeted should immediately put the phone down and apply for free identity protection from SAFPS.
He also has some tips on how to spot if you’ve been a victim of identity theft:
Listen below for his tips: