WeeklySA_AdminPREVENTION: Important campaigns have been rolled out over the years to educate consumers about scams
By Thuli Zungu
South Africa has been identified as a popular country targeted by fraudsters, according to Statistics from the Southern African Fraud Prevention Service (SAFPS). There has been a 600% increase in incidents reported by SAFPS members in 2022 compared to 2018.
In response to the growing need for a proactive approach to fraud prevention, the SAFPS is developing a product called Yima. Nazia Karrim, Head of Product Development at SAFPS, says their role as the South African custodian of fraud prevention, is to take decisive action to tackle the problem that scams are posing to the country’s economy.
Once launched, the Yima website will be a one-stop-shop for South Africans to report scams, secure their identity and scan any other website for vulnerabilities related to scams. They will also be able to educate themselves in identifying a scam.
“These tools will enable consumers to surf the net more confidently and go about their daily lives aware and informed. These are just some exciting elements South Africans can access through the site,” says Karrim.
Over the years, the SAFPS has rolled out several important communication campaigns that aimed to educate South Africans about the various fraudulent activities and scams they can become victims of.
“However, the challenge is that reporting a scam – while important – is a reactive response once a person has already become a victim.
We need to establish a proactive approach to combating fraud and scams.” Karrim says the SAFPS continuously engages with various industry associations to reduce the country’s fraud landscape. The main element of the website will be the ability to report a scam incident or any suspicious activity to the SAFPS.
“This suspicious activity includes a fake or suspect-looking online shopping website/portal and instances where the user has received phoney banking information.
These reports will be collated and shared with law enforcement agencies for investigation. Users will also be provided a scams hotline to report a fraud incident directly to their banks, retailers or insurance companies via a single number. Users will only need to remember one number rather than search for each institution’s contact numbers online,”says Karrim.
Additionally, Yima users will have access to the consumer products and services offered by the SAFPS. “The most unique element of Yima is the ability to provide the consumer with the tools to be proactive when preventing scams and the services to assist them when they fall victim to a scam. This will make a significant difference in the war on scams. Empowering the consumer is key to prevention.”
Karrim says not all scams are conducted online. She gave an example of one of their clients who was almost scammed upon returning to South Africa from a holiday in Mauritius.
Her mobile SIM card malfunctioned, leaving her incredibly stressed as an important business tool was not working. She quickly switched off her smartphone and restarted it, hoping it was a freak occurrence. A few minutes later, she received a call from an individual who informed her that he was from her mobile service provider.
The caller indicated that he noticed that her SIM card malfunctioned and that he could assist in fixing it. All she needed to do was provide him with the one-time pin (OTP) sent to her phone.
Well aware of the various scams fraudsters use to target individuals, the client questioned the so-called representative about why he needed the OTP. Then, in an angry outburst, he started raising his voice and threatening to disconnect her service immediately if she did not comply with his request.
Fortunately, the client was unmoved and aware of the potential scam risks, she informed the so-called representative that she would visit the nearest branch of her mobile operator to address the issue in person. She then disconnected the call.
“Many South Africans would have panicked and given in to the scammer’s demands. “This exchange is just one of the many examples of how Yima will make a significant difference in educating the consumer about the tactics used by scammers to pressure them to comply with the demands and, in the process, fall victim to the scam.
“In the future, this client will now be able to report this incident on Yima and have direct access to her mobile provider and banks to alert them of the issue via the scams’ hotline,” says Karrim.
One of the crucial elements when it comes to a proactive approach to scam prevention is early detection and intervention.
Yima will be the perfect platform to accomplish this and to communicate the message: “Stop. Think. Don’t get scammed!”
“Additionally, Yima will have a newsroom portal with reports and case studies about these scams so that the public can be warned about them.
‘’ Yima is unique because it empowers the consumer with a method to access products that will help secure their identity, report a scam incident and provide them with a layer of protection they never had before, free of charge’’, says Karrim.
The SAFPS is engaging with local and international industry stakeholders to build a powerful product which it plans to launch in June after undergoing significant Beta testing.
Published on the 98th Edition
