Police warn public about phony ATM messages

Police in Cyprus are warning the public to be on the lookout for suspicious text messages, saying scammers pretending to be bank employees are trying to trick people by telling them their debit cards have been blocked and need to be reauthorized.

Police told Knews on Wednesday there were several more complaints recently where scammers told unsuspecting victims their debit cards were blocked.

The con artists, who already can see their victims’ full name on social media, typically ask for card numbers and security passwords, saying the information is needed to confirm and reactivate an ATM card.

“People should never follow these instructions, this is an obvious scam,” a police press officer said.

Banking institutions have also recently reminded customers that banks never ask for ATM passwords over the phone.

The fraudulent messages, usually sent through messaging programs such as Facebook’s Messenger and Skype, appear to invite recipients to click on and dial a local phone number to speak with a bank customer service representative.

Police say the first thing bank customers should do, before responding to any activity online, would be to call the bank’s listed customer service number directly and ask to speak with a live person.