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| Users should be wary of clicking on links to
bogus banking websites |
One of Switzerland's largest regional banking organisations has
been targeted by criminals aiming to defraud customers.
Basler Kantonalbank (BKB), headquartered in Basel, has warned
customers to be wary of emails claiming to come from the bank which
may result in sensitive banking details being stolen or
"phished".
In a warning
on its website the bank warns users not to click on links
contained in the emails, which direct customers to a bogus version
of BKB website. There, customers are asked to type in their
authorisation details - giving critical information to
fraudsters.
Once account numbers, PIN and login password details have been
obtained the fraudsters can easily steal money from the innocent
user's bank.
"Wealthy investors around the world have always regarded private
banks in Switzerland as a safe haven for their fortunes," said
Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. "We are
seeing a steady increase in the number of 'phishing' attacks
designed to steal money from innocent computer users. People who
bank online should be aware of this kind of fraud and ensure they
don't find themselves with empty wallets."
Other "phishing" attempts have included bogus emails claiming to
come from a number of banks including Wells Fargo, Nationwide, NatWest, Barclays, Westpac and Halifax.
Sophos PureMessage can help prevent
workers from receiving email scams such as the one described above
by providing a consolidated defence against spam and viruses, as
well as helping enforce a corporate messaging policy.
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.