News Australia: Older Aussies are exposed by shift to online banking. “Data shows phishing attacks on senior Australians are on the rise in a big way, with the ACCC’s Scamwatch reporting Australians over 65 have lost more money to phishing scams this year than all other age groups combined – totalling over $6.5 million in the first eight months of the year. And that could just be the tip of the iceberg.”
Reuters: Exclusive-Google faces pressure in India to help curb illegal lending apps -sources. “Alphabet Inc’s Google has been asked by the Indian government and the central bank to introduce more stringent checks to help curb the use of illegal digital lending applications in India, according to sources.”
New York Times: When Customers Say Their Money Was Stolen on Zelle, Banks Often Refuse to Pay. “While banks argue that they shouldn’t have to refund customers who inadvertently granted a scammer permission to use their accounts, they have also often been reluctant to refund customers like Mr. Oriach whose money was stolen. That could be a potential violation of the law.”
The Register: Cybercriminals do their homework for latest banking scam . “A new social engineering scam is making the rounds, and this one is particularly insidious: It tricks users into sending money to what they think is their own account to reverse a fraudulent charge.”
SC Media: Cybercriminals target mobile as consumers embrace digital transactions. “With 75% of potential cyberattacks targeting mobile digital transactions, it seems clear that bad actors are going after mobile financial transactions as they see those as easier and more lucrative, according to a cybercrime report from LexisNexis Solutions. The findings were based on an analysis of transaction data from the LexisNexis Digital Identity Network in the second half of last year, which analyzed 35.5 billion transactions.”
Threatpost: Researchers Flag 300K Banking Trojan Infections from Google Play in 4 Months. “Overcoming Google Play app restrictions, attackers have successfully racked up more than 300,000 banking trojan installations over just the past four months in the official Android app marketplace.”
BNN Bloomberg: Google Shelves Plans for Bank Accounts in Revamped Pay App. “Alphabet Inc.’s Google is shelving plans to add bank accounts to its payment app, becoming the latest tech giant to dial back its ambitions for financial services. For years, Google has said it’s working on adding bank accounts from partners such as Citigroup Inc. and Bank of Montreal to its revamped app. The idea was that Google Pay users would be able to use the app to apply for so-called Plex checking and savings accounts from 11 banks.”
CNET: Fake or for real? How to know if a text from your bank is legit. “In a world in which fraudsters are increasingly finding new ways to steal from our accounts, my guard’s instantly up when I receive a text from my bank. But hackers are becoming much savvier at their game. So much so, that I almost fell for a scam this month. Here’s what happened — and the (somewhat embarrassing) lessons I learned.”
News 4 San Antonio: New bank scams are using information from your social media to hook you. “Local experts say scammers are using information from your social media to hook you and make you think an email is really from your bank. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, scammers know you’re plugged into your bank account like never before. You might be waiting for a stimulus check, unemployment or a PPP loan – making you primed and ready for any emails that look like they’re from your bank.”
CNBC: Google moves into Venmo and bank territory with checking accounts and updated payment app. “The Mountain View, California-based company partnered with Citi and Stanford Federal Credit Union to launch the mobile bank accounts and said it plans to add 11 new partner institutions next year. Google Pay will also let users send peer-to-peer payments — a feature that made PayPal’s Venmo and Square’s Cash App household names as people shift to digital payments during the pandemic.”
Yahoo Finance: Coronavirus: Banking apps more popular than social media during pandemic. “Mobile banking apps have now become more popular than social media as a result of COVID-19, research suggests. Older generations have flocked to online and mobile banking to ensure they stay on top of their money and bills while remaining safe during the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, people in the UK are now more likely to have a banking app than a social media app on their mobile phone.”
KHOU: Will you pass? This quiz website helps bank users outsmart scammers. “Next time you get onto your bank’s website or check their phone app, look for a little button that says, ‘would your bank really ask that?’ It will take you to a quiz, and some of those questions just might stump you.”
MarketWatch: Russia’s ‘Google’ Yandex joins super-app race with $5.5 billion offer for online bank Tinkoff. “Shares in TCS Group Holdings rose almost 7% on Wednesday, after the Russian bank said it is in talks to sell its online bank Tinkoff to Russian technology giant Yandex for almost $5.5 billion. The two companies said late on Tuesday they had come to an agreement in principle on a cash-and-shares offer that would value London-listed Tinkoff at $5.48 billion, or $27.64 a share. The offer represents an 8% premium over Tinkoff’s closing share price on Sept. 21.”
BBC: Android ‘spoofing’ bug helps targets bank accounts. “A ‘major’ security weakness in Google’s Android software has let cyber-thieves craft apps that can steal banking logins, a security firm has found. The bug lets attackers create fake login screens that can be inserted into legitimate apps to harvest data.”
BetaNews: Banking malware grows as cryptominers decline. “The latest mid-year Cyber Attack Trends Report from Check Point shows mobile banking malware attacks are up 50 percent compared to the first half of 2018, while the number of organizations hit by cryptominers is down to 26 percent, from 41 percent last year.”
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