Vishing

Safe account scams are a form of vishing where criminals try to get you to move your money to a “safe account”. The caller may pretend to be from a collection agency, public authority or bank. 

Before the call, you may get a phishing message in which the scammer attempts to steal your online banking credentials and potentially other sensitive information. 

The scammer will claim that your money is at risk and that you need to transfer it somewhere safe. They will attempt to manipulate you into transferring the money to another bank account and even installing remote access software on your computer. In reality, this “safe account” is controlled by the criminals. 

Banks, public authorities and other organisations will never ask you to move your money to such bank accounts as a security measure.  

• Never reveal your personal online banking credentials or account details over the phone even if the caller demands it or claims to be asking for them for your own security. 
• Remember that representatives of the police, your bank or the authorities will never call to ask you for your online banking credentials. 
• Vishing calls may come from Finnish phone numbers. If a call seems suspicious, you should hang up. You can verify with the customer service of the service provider in question whether they have tried to contact you. 
• Scammers may also speak Finnish and sound very convincing. Hang up the call at the slightest suspicion and contact the organisation the caller claimed to represent. 
• Large companies such as Microsoft don’t call their customers. If you receive a phone call from someone claiming to be a Microsoft employee, you should hang up. 
• If there are problems with your computer, contact the technical support for the device. 
• Never allow anyone to install remote access software on your computer or phone. The authorities and trustworthy companies don’t use them as part of their customer service. 
• Never move your money to a “safe account”. Hang up the call and contact your bank.