Zambian bank customers hit by debit card scam

The banking sector in Zambia has all its defences up following a week-long scam which has affected bank customers, some of whom have had funds wiped out by fraudsters.

Debit card holders, in particular those who use automated teller machines (ATMs) to withdraw money, are being warned to pay attention to their accounts.

BBC Network Africa's Mutuna Chanda reports from Lusaka.

Preventing credit card fraud

Anyone with a credit card is a potential target for fraudsters. As wary and cautious as you might be, it’s easier than you think to be taken in by sophisticated scams.

Watchdog carried out an experiment demonstrating the effectiveness of an old-style scam. Mock fraudsters, Paul and Alexis from The Real Hustle, showed just how easily they were able to gain victims' credit card details over the phone.

Out of the ten calls made, the hustlers managed to gain the trust of five of the targets and convince them to hand over their card details, including the all-important three-digit security code.

Methods of credit card fraud

As well as this method of 'Card-not-present' fraud, credit card fraud can take many different forms:

# When cards are lost or stolen and used fraudulently

# When cards are counterfeited or cloned (known as 'skimming')

# 'Card-not-present' fraud – which can occur online, by fax or phone using stolen card details

# Fake emails designed to elicit your details (known as 'phishing')

# Fake online banking websites designed to mimic banks’ official sites ('pharming')