Voice Phishing on the Rise Again
Always Verify Suspicious Calls
# An employee at Samsung Securities Dogok WM1 branch felt something was off when a customer requested to withdraw all their stocks (600 million KRW) and inquired about a stock-backed loan. Following the branch's inquiry system, when asked about the purpose of the withdrawal, the customer’s voice became subdued and they answered it was for business funds. Suspecting voice phishing, the branch employee actively explained the situation to the customer and successfully prevented the damage.
# At IBK Incheon Juan branch, a customer requested a cash withdrawal of 100 million KRW from a deposit that was prematurely terminated the day before. When the branch employee asked to see the customer’s mobile phone, the customer repeatedly refused and deleted all text message conversations. The employee contacted the customer’s spouse, who is also a client of the same bank, and learned that the customer had recently received calls related to card delivery, confirming it was a voice phishing attempt. The employee persistently persuaded and explained to the customer, successfully preventing the damage.
The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) recently announced that while voice phishing damages are increasing, high-value damage cases continue to occur, especially involving more sophisticated card delivery impersonation schemes.
In response, the FSS held a meeting on the 24th at its Yeouido office in Seoul, jointly with investigative agencies and the financial sector, to strengthen on-site response capabilities of financial companies.
Kim Mi-young, Director of the Financial Consumer Protection Department at the FSS, who attended the meeting, said, "Despite government-wide efforts so far, the scale of recent damages continues to increase, so we urge financial company employees who interact with customers to take proactive measures." She added, "In particular, to effectively block voice phishing crimes, we request closer and more organic cooperation with investigative agencies."
Hong Wan-hee, Head of the Government Joint Investigation Team at the Dongbu District Prosecutors’ Office, stated, "Since the joint investigation team was launched in July 2022, we have achieved significant results, including arresting many domestic and international call center masterminds and organizations distributing fake bank accounts, but the scale of voice phishing damages has sharply increased since last year." He emphasized, "To effectively prevent voice phishing crimes, it is necessary to promptly report suspicious situations detected on-site in the financial sector to investigative agencies."
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