Beware Of Bizum: This Is How They Are Using The Platform To Steal Your Money
The platform is very secure; However, cybercriminals have already found several ways to exploit it to scam the victim.
Bizum has been among the most popular platforms for sending money between individuals for years. That is why it is not uncommon for cybercriminals to be trying to exploit the platform to obtain financial gain. Recently, agents assigned to the Group of Technological Crimes of the Judicial Police of the Higher Police Headquarters of La Rioja, alerted of a specific type of scam in which the application has been used.
In this case, the criminals took advantage of an offer to sell a vehicle to deceive the owner and steal 400 euros. How did they get it? Sending a request for money instead of a payment through Bizum.
Jordi Nebot, CEO of the company focused on the development of online payment tools Paynopain, explains in conversation with ABC that Bizum is a “very secure” platform, however, a malicious person can use it to scam: “So that you are scammed Two main things have to happen with Bizum. The first, that you have shared your data with someone, such as the phone number, which allows them to contact you through Bizum. The second is the use of the picaresque.
In order not to fall for tricks like the one reported by the La Rioja Higher Police Headquarters, Nebot points out that you have to be careful with the request for money, which, moreover, is “a lesser-known feature” of Bizum: “What many do Scammers is that, as this functionality is unknown many times, they tell you that they are going to send you money and that you will receive a code to confirm the shipment. What happens is that it is a lie, and in reality what they are sending is a request for you to pay them.
The expert points out that “if you do not read carefully the message that Bizum sends you” to make sure that the other user is making a payment, it is easy to fall into the trap. Review, review and review. Keep in mind that to receive money they will never ask for your approval, but they will ask for it to be sent», remind its users from the platform.
Be Careful With The ‘Vishing’
The ‘ vishing ‘, which is when the scammer impersonates a company through a phone call to deceive the victim, has also affected Bizum. A few months ago, the Internet Security Office, dependent on the National Cybersecurity Institute (Incibe), warned about a campaign in which cybercriminals impersonated Social Security to report an alleged refund of money that would be made through Bizum.
«There are many variables, both from Social Security and from other organizations. Basically what they tell you is that to collect a subsidy, put your phone in and confirm a code. The operation, in the end, is similar to that of the previous case », says Nebot.
