Received an e-mail from Samba security center? Could be scam!
Published: Mar 17, 2010 01:18 Updated: Mar 17, 2010 01:18
JEDDAH: An e-mail, which says it has been sent from the security center of Samba Bank, has recently been showing up in the personal inboxes of Samba account holders.
The e-mail. which carries the subject line, Samba Bank — Update Your Account, informs customers that the bank has upgraded to a more secure and encrypted SSL server to improve efficiency.
The e-mail goes on to say that due to this recent upgrade, customers are requested to update their account information by following a link included in the e-mail.
It also explains that once customers have updated their account, they will receive an activation code to their mobile phones or will receive a call from a customer service agent.
The e-mail advises customers to “update their accounts,” adding that “this e-mail has been sent to all our bank customers, and it is compulsory to follow as failure to verify account details will lead to account suspension.”
Arab News investigated to see what would happen if one clicked on the link, which led to a page that looks similar to the real Samba Online Banking website. The page looks authentic and has some of the same flashing logos and icons that the actual website has.
Arab News then contacted the Global Transactions Department in Samba’s head office in Jeddah to ask if the e-mail was authentic and if the bank is actually updating its account holders’ information to which the manager replied, “No this is incorrect. We would never ask account holders to update information online or via e-mail. Everything for account information is done with the bank requesting account holders to appear in person at any of our bank branches to take care of these matters.”
To protect its online banking customers, Samba has created a security tips page in cooperation with Symantec, the US-based Internet Security corporation. “Check that the bank’s website address changes from http to https once you enter the log in page and that there is a security icon which looks like a lock appearing at the bottom of the webpage,” the website says.
It adds that if further security information is needed to verify whether the site is authentic, one can click on the lock icon to verify whether the security certificate is issued by www.samba.com.
According to Symantec, the greatest threat to online banking customers around the world is from phishers, such as the Samba phishers.
“They pass themselves off as official financial institutions. They build a fake bank website that looks just like the real one and then send e-mails to millions of that bank’s customers, alerting them to an irregularity in account information and demanding immediate action or saying that the account will be closed. Customers who comply risk having their bank accounts drained and their computers infected with viruses,” Symantec said.
Arab News has forwarded the e-mail to Samba’s Global Transaction department for further investigation.
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Mar 17, 2010 21:00
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