Malware Scams: *How you can lower your risk as online transactions are increasingly common. Here are some tips to lessen the risk of compromising your phone and banking details.

*How you can lower your risk as online transactions are increasingly common, so here are some tips to lessen the risk of compromising your phone and banking details.*

*1.Shop with reputable merchants*

*Support only merchants who go the extra mile to ensure that your details stay safe. Amazon, Lazada and Qoo10, for example, have been certified as following the best online practices set by the Inter-Ministry Committee on Scams.*

If you choose to deal with unknown and stand-alone online retailers that are not part of reputable e-commerce platforms, you should think twice about disclosing your banking details.

You should instead ask for their PayNow codes to pay them using your own banking app and then send them a screenshot of the transfer as proof of purchase. Think twice before downloading any special app for any transaction because this is a popular ploy used by scammers.

If they insist that you follow their payment instruction, it is a sign that you are better off not dealing with them.

*2. Don’t leave banking details in stand-alone platforms*

If you don’t want to have sleepless nights and the hassle of making police reports after your banking details are misused, you should avoid keying in your details in such platforms.

For instance, instead of keying in your credit card information for online payment at some small restaurants, ask to pay at the counter.

If the owner refuses, consider dining elsewhere. Why should you leave your card details with small players when even all the big boys don’t employ such practices? 

*3. Use a separate device for leisure*

If you are an avid gamer or someone who cannot resist trying out all the fun apps in the market, have a separate device that is used solely for leisure.

It is prudent not to pack all the apps into a single device that also contains your banking and government apps. After all, there is no telling when hackers may hide their nefarious software in a leisure app to target victims.

If you have a separate device for leisure only, you will reduce your risk of having important information stolen from your main device.

There is a silver lining in the latest hacking incident – it serves as a timely reminder that our phones are just as important as our house keys and we should guard them jealously and not use them to access any fishy sites.

Information source:

https://www.straitstimes.com/business/invest/how-you-can-shield-your-cpf-and-bank-accounts-from-scammers