There’s an inherent danger to that convenience. You don’t know what the OTP is for, because you haven’t read the SMS or the email. Because you were waiting for the OTP, and it arrived. What if it was for a bigger amount than your intended payment. Possible, isn’t it?
That’s what happened to Josephine (name changed on request). She was recharging her phone credit for Dh20 using her credit card. The OTP arrived, she promptly entered the digits, and the transaction was processed. A little later, when she checked the SMS from the bank, Josephine was shocked to find that she had been charged Dh20,220 by another entity. It was not the telecom provider but an entity posing as a government department.
The standard procedure followed. Credit card blocked. A complaint was registered with the bank. Will Josephine get back her money? Her hard-earned money was swiped by an unscrupulous fraudster. A momentary lapse in concentration has led to so much trauma and anxiety.
What could have been done to prevent this cyber theft? A bit of mindfulness would have helped. All of us are distracted at times. We are vulnerable in such moments, making us prone to silly mistakes. That’s when fraudsters strike. Even the most guarded person can fall prey in such moments.
Josephine was one. Usually a careful person, in her haste to make an urgent phone call, she must have overlooked the amount on the OTP. I suspect she might have been on a phoney website. The only thing that could have saved her is the OTP.
OTP, the one-time passcode, offers protection during online transactions. Every time you make an online payment, the bank needs the OTP to process the payment. It’s your consent to proceed with the payment. You have to be careful with consent, which is why it’s important to read the OTP message before punching the digits.
Online fraud is rampant worldwide, and fraudsters could be sitting several thousand kilometres away, in another country or continent, waiting for us to slip up. A silly error, and they vanish into cyberspace with our money. Our blood, sweat and toil. Why would we part with it?
Banks and financial institutions are well aware of internet-savvy criminals. This is why they repeatedly run awareness campaigns and remind us every month to be vigilant against cyber criminals. We have to follow their expert advice.
Make it a practice to be very careful every time you make an online transaction. Don’t be distracted. Everything can wait till you finish the transaction.
Here are a few tips for safe online transactions.
It pays to be cautious. After all, it’s our money. Crooks don’t deserve it.