Phone compromised; credit card hacked. What are all the steps to take to recover money from the bank?

Sandeep Sethi, a 30-year-old resident of Dwarka, fell victim to a scam. He received a call claiming to be from his gas company and was threatened with disconnection if he didn't pay an outstanding bill immediately. Alarmed, Sandeep followed the agent's instructions and paid the bill through a fraudulent link, unknowingly transferring money to the scammer. Later on, he discovered that his smartphone was compromised and his credit card was hacked.

While he was finding ways to delete chats and fraudulent links and call the bank, he lost around Rs 15000 via unwarranted credit card transactions.

Finally, he successfully formatted the phone but paid a heavy cost. However, he immediately informed the banker and filed a complaint about this fraudulent activity with the bank. But now, he is wondering whether he will get back the money.

Varun Grover, Brand Safety BU Head, mFilterIt, said, "Sometimes, even the most vigilant person can fall victim to a phone compromise or credit card hack. The most important part is to build awareness around such incidents and prompt reporting. If you suspect your phone or credit card has been compromised, don't hesitate to contact your bank and take action. It's also important to implement preventive measures to protect yourself in the future."

The process of recovering money from the bank generally involves several key steps: promptly reporting the fraud to your bank, freezing or cancelling your compromised accounts, monitoring your statements for unauthorized transactions, filing a police report, and potentially disputing charges.

"To recover your funds, review your bank and credit card statements for unrecognised transactions. Contact your bank and file a dispute for any fraudulent charges or transactions. Your bank will investigate the claim and may provisionally credit your account while they investigate," said Grover.

"Multiple banks also use internal safeguard mechanisms to protect their reputation and ensure their services are not used for fraudulent purposes. They leverage OSINT technology for advanced risk assessment and Real-time transaction monitoring to detect suspicious activity," added Grover.

Steps to protect your phone

By acting quickly and taking the necessary steps, you can minimise the damage from a phone compromise or credit card hack. Be Proactive! Set strong passwords and enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). Keep your phone's operating system and apps updated with the latest security patches. Outdated software can have vulnerabilities that hackers exploit.

"Don't click on suspicious links or attachments in emails or text messages to protect yourself from phishing scams App. Another very critical factor is being cautious when granting permissions to apps on your phone. Only give apps access to the information they need to function. Avoid using public Wi-Fi for sensitive activities like online banking. And again, regularly review your bank statements and credit card statements for any suspicious activity," said Grover.