Title: Slovenian Businesses Warned About Banking Scams: Police Urge Vigilance

Date: 29 September 2023

Overview

In the past month, over a dozen Slovenian legal entities have experienced significant financial losses due to a series of banking scams. The total amount swindled amounts to 1.4 million euros, according to local police reports.

The Threat: Fake Emails and Calls from Fraudsters

These banking scams typically begin with an innocuous email or phone call from a suspected fraudster. The email, disguised as a communication from a legitimate bank, requests urgent updates or upgrades to the recipient’s online banking. It may contain a clickable link, or ask for sensitive information like tax numbers or one-time passwords.

The scammers then pose as the bank’s technical support staff, eliciting more information from their victims and completing the sequence necessary for unauthorized access to the bank account. The victims’ hard-earned savings are subsequently emptied, and transferred to a foreign account to thwart easy recovery.

Red Flags: Identifying Phishing Emails

The police recommend businesses keep an eye out for several red flags when identifying potential phishing emails:

• Emails or text messages that seemingly originate from a bank
• Emails or text messages that contain clickable links
• Emails or text messages that request additional information like tax numbers, telephone numbers, or one-time passwords

Best Practices: Protecting Your Business

Banks themselves do not ask their clients to provide login credentials or personal information via links sent through email or text messages. To protect yourself from falling prey to these scams:

1. Access your online banking services using the official app or the legitimate URL address.
2. Report any suspicious emails, along with all available documentation, to the nearest police station and your banking institution as soon as possible.
3. Stay informed about the latest online security and fraud prevention measures on sites like the Slovenian Computer Emergency Response Team SI-CERT’s website and various Slovenian banks’ websites.