International gangs, apps hit Kuwait – Bank accounts targeted – ARAB TIMES

by James · December 25, 2022

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KUWAIT CITY, Dec 25: After prosecutors sounded the alarm over wire fraud and announced 300 complaints from victims, tech experts warned of international gangs targeting bank accounts in Kuwait and the use of suspicious apps for personal hacking. data and then blackmail their owners to get money, reports Al-Qabas daily. Technicians explained that some gangs operating in Kuwait and abroad aim to make the most victims and, in addition to stealing credit card numbers, use them to download a series of apps onto their phones to steal their personal information.

They pointed out that these gangs work with people of both sexes and contact citizens and residents to lure them into investing with fictitious investment, financial and marketing services and trick them into winning prizes.

They added that despite the fact that the Ministry of the Interior has repeatedly warned about remote access requests in the past month, the number of victims continues to decrease day by day, until the number of complaints received by the prosecutor’s office has exceeded 300 regarding one request.

In parallel with the prosecution’s efforts, the Ministry of Interior arrested 20 residents, men and women, who provided services in violation of Kuwaiti laws and regulations and defrauded individuals through applications and social networking sites using international and encrypted numbers. The head of the Kuwait Information Security Society, Dr. Safa’a Zaman, said that apps that rely on the remote access system are the ones that receive the most complaints to the prosecutor’s office because these apps “allow people to remotely access the device for a number of reasons , including how companies provide remote assistance to customers, and unfortunately, recently some of these phone services have been misused to access devices for fraudulent purposes.

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Zaman went on to say that one of the most important pieces of advice for dealing with the dangers of such apps is to “not trust messages or calls from any party, for any reason, and do not download any apps or click on any links on request. from others, for whatever reason. He added: if anyone feels a change or strange movement in the phone, they should immediately notify the relevant authorities and, regardless of the pretext, do not give any information that allows access to the phone device to a person who does not know them. .

He urged people not to share bank account login details or send passwords to anyone over the internet. He indicated that in the event of intrusion, the phone should be immediately scanned with anti-virus software or an expert in this regard, and the relevant authorities should be informed of the fraud, as well as the direct change of data, passwords and addresses, and the bank with which you do business, as well as credit card institutions and others.

The daily also observed that a group of men and women obtained money through social networking sites, relying on the activation of fake accounts, suspicious invitations from users, and banking links as prizes via WhatsApp.

Some of these gangs have also exploited victims through smart applications based on a virtual network that supports the VPN encryption system, requiring users to purchase a financial card worth $14 to $200, depending on the type of service. Some fraudsters exploit citizens and residents through fake accounts and international phone numbers where they communicate with the victim via “WhatsApp” and then invite them to buy materials from local markets in exchange for often fake offers in addition to options. financial links marked with the names of local banks are sent for the purpose of fraud and theft of phone data, with the condition of payment of a specified value, and invitations to purchase digital currencies and investments, or to win prizes.