Due to the rising incidents of digital fraud against customers of banks across the country, Ecobank Ghana has announced its decision to decline online transactions on selected third-party websites and Apps to protect its customers from fraud.
In an official public notice issued Thursday, November 17, 2022, Ecobank Ghana said in as much as it seeks to provide customers with convenience and reliability, it is also priority for the bank to ensure the safety and security of customers’ banking transactions.
“Ecobank is therefore implementing added measures to ensure your security as you use Ecobank cards on other third-party platforms. In view of that, you may experience some declines on certain merchant platforms,” the bank said.
This has become necessary because since the Bank of Ghana directed banks to link the bank accounts of all customers to their Ghana Cards, some fraudsters have gone on the rampage pretending to be staff of banks, calling bank customers and purporting to help them do that linkage, but they end up defrauding those unsuspecting customers.
The fraudster would often ask for very sensitive bank account related information such as ATM PIN, CVV Code, OTP (one time password), bank account number and ATM card number among other things.
Some also send SMS with active links for customers to click on and provide their bank details to a fake portal purporting to be that off Ecobank Ghana.
Several bank customers, including customers of Ecobank have been caught off guard and defrauded in this manner. The customers only get to know about the fraud when they start receiving SMS alerts on their phones about transfers from their bank accounts into strange mobile money wallets.
Ecobank is therefore cautioning customers to “never share your card details, OTP, CVV, PIN etc. with anyone, no matter how convincing, genuine or professional the person sounds, or the message may seem.”
The leading Pan African Bank, which was adjudged Best Bank of the Year as the recent Innovation and Excellence Awards during the Connected Banking Summit, also assured customers that it will continue to explore other innovative ways to protect customers from the activities of fraudsters.
Meanwhile, customers are being used to take steps to verify all third-party Apps and websites before onboarding card details and transacting on such platforms.
“Kindly call 0800003225 for any support you may require or visit the nearest Ecobank Branch when you are unsure,” the notice said.
