Fraudulent emails and websites
It is important that cardholders are
vigilant against 'phishing' emails and websites that claim to be
from Visa or other card providers, banks or organisations.
What is phishing?
'Phishing' is the term used for the activities of criminals who
create and use fraudulent emails and associated websites. These are
designed to look like emails and websites of well-known, legitimate
businesses, financial institutions and government agencies.
These emails and websites are created in order to deceive
internet users into disclosing their bank and financial account
information or other personal data such as mother’s maiden name,
addresses, usernames and passwords. This information could then be
used for criminal purposes, such as identity theft and fraud.
The threat from phishing is small, but it is always better to be
alert.
What you should do
If you receive an email requesting personal account information
claiming to come from Visa, your bank or any other organisation, do
not provide the details. Instead, contact your card-issuing bank to
determine whether or not the email was sent from them.
You can also forward the message to phishing@visa.com and we will
investigate further. While we cannot advise on individual cases,
the email address is monitored 24 hours a day, every day of the
week, and the appropriate action will be taken to close sites or
disable links where possible.
The most effective way to avoid ‘phishing’ scams is to never
provide your account, security or personal details in response to
unsolicited communications claiming to be from any financial
institution.