By Delisa Thwala
The Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE) in a bid to try to eradicate online financial scams held a collaborative financial education talk at the Methula constituency, Shiselweni region.
The talk involved the Central Bank of Eswatini, the Ombudsman of financial services, and the Competition Commission.
The event focused on equipping residents with crucial financial knowledge, including their rights and responsibilities as banking consumers.
Attendees were informed about complaint resolution processes, which can be initiated directly with financial institutions or escalated to the Ombudsman’s office.
A Manager from the Central Bank shared the importance of protecting personal information and guarding against online financial scams.
He said given their increasing prevalence. Additionally, local startup businesses were introduced to the Bank’s guarantee schemes.
The enthusiastic participation of Methula residents throughout the event demonstrated the success of the initiative in empowering them to confidently navigate the financial landscape.
Worth mentioning is that the bank was fresh from having a stall at the ongoing Career Fair with pupils from various schools making a stop to enquire about the CBE and what programmes and opportunities it has for life after high school.
Meanwhile Social media expert Penny Bouwer has warned that, scammers may promise some kind of benefit: a loan, a prize like a foreign lottery, a government grant, an inheritance, an opportunity to work from home, or more.
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She said the catch is, they want payment up front before you can receive your benefit.
“This can be anything from identity theft, online transactions, dating scams and more, all designed to fool you and take your money,” she said.
In addition she said, If someone called, texted, emails, or mails you asking for your personal information e.g., social security number, credit card number, bank account info, passwords, DO NOT GIVE IT TO THEM.
“Even if they appear to be a known company or claim to be from a trusted source, they may be scamming you to steal your identity or money.
This is known as phishing. Make sure to carefully consider whether the link you have been sent is authentic.
You may want to independently reach out to the business or agency on your own terms using a known phone or website instead of accepting the unsolicited contact,” advised the expert.
She concluded by saying most legitimate companies will not contact anyone this way asking for personal information.
“Trying to scam your scammer to get revenge is a terrible idea. Do not do it. You will not fool them, and you may end up getting scammed after all.
If you feel you are the subject of a scam, simply cut off communication and then file a complaint with the police,” she said.
In 2022, the then Deputy National Commissioner Mumcy Dlamini said available statistics showed that over E55 million was lost through fraud in the period spanning from October, 2021 to September alone which indicated a 0.5 percent increase when compared to the previous year.
Dlamini said this during the launch of the International Fraud Awareness Week Launch themed ‘Think before you Click’, she said without doubt, fraud was a scourge that was constantly affecting the financial stability of individuals and businesses in the country.
‘The rerun theme “Think Before You Click” encourages thoughtfulness, soberness and consciousness, and when transacting online,” she said.
She further added that cyber related fraud scams that were most predominant in the country included ATM Fraud where the victims PIN and debit or credit card numbers were stolen and used to withdraw money from ATMs without authorisation.
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“More than E400 000 was lost from 45 cases reported under this scam and over 141 cases of this scam have been reported between the period of October, 2021 and September, 2022 on internet fraud,” she said.
Meanwhile Eswatini Communications Commission (ESCCOM) in their website has revealed that there has been a high number of cases reported where Emaswati are being defrauded through bogus calls, false SMSes, false notifications, etc.
promising help in securing funding through social grants, employment or financial gain through any means possible.
According to ESCOM, the said fraudsters attempt to gain confidential details like the user ID, password, one-time pin, and any other personal details to defraud the public of their money.
The most common mobile payment scams currently prevalent in Eswatini are Social contest scams where scammers are using social media to launch fake competitions through which they then trick victims into giving up personal financial information or sending a mobile payment.
Fraudsters contact individuals and claim that they have won the competition, then request a fee to facilitate the release of the prize.
There are also cash prize scams, hackers call individuals saying they have qualified for a cash prize that will be deposited into their account.
The scammers request the “prize winners” for details regarding their preferred mobile money platform.
Once the unsuspecting victim reveals this, the scammer then requests for a one-time pin in an attempt to withdraw funds from the account.
