Fraud using Bank Account Numbers

Fraud Meaning

• the crime of getting money by tricking or deceiving people
• something that is not what it appears to be and is deliberately used to deceive people
• someone who deceives people, by saying they are something they are not

Scammer Meaning

• a person who commits or participates in a fraudulent scheme or operation

Bank Account Number for Fraud

If someone has your bank account number, but not your routing number (BSB number Australia, Sort Code UK), the financial harm they can inflict is limited. For instance, it would be difficult to withdraw money from your account or create new debits without being able to identify which bank your account is at. But if someone has both your bank account and routing number, they can make fraudulent purchases.

Most banks do not supply your bank account and routing number in the file of your transactions, instead they mask it slightly.

Fraudulent Purchases

Scammers can link your checking account to Affirm or Afterpay to make big purchases like furniture, electronics, and jewellery.

Scammers can set up subscription bill payments, like rent, utilities, and other subscriptions.

Monitor your bank account activity. Regularly reviewing your account activity could help prevent fraud, or at least limit the damage if you notice and report it right away.

Using this app to regularly review your account activity, would enable you to quickly spot fraud.

Scammers will use it to gain trust

While your bank account number isn’t going to give scammers instant access to your finances, they can use it as leverage to obtain further information that they can use to access to your finances (online banking login details/debit card pin numbers/etc).

For example, they may send you a phishing email or text, impersonating your financial institution, asking you to “confirm” your login details. They include your real account number to trick you into trusting the legitimacy of the message. They will try to create a sense of urgency to encourage you to provide the information there and then.

Don’t respond to ANY emails/texts/calls from Financial Institutions. Instead, contact your Financial Institution by calling them (using their advertised number) and ask if they contacted you.

Sign up for paperless statements. Switching to electronic statements can reduce the risk that someone could steal your paper statements and get access to your bank account number.