Phishing scams

What is a phishing scam?

Phishing scams are one of many types of fraud. They happen when a scammer pretends to be from a trusted organisation, like a telecommunications or internet provider, financial institution, online retail, courier and delivery services and more. Their goal is to get hold of your personal or financial information.

Example of a phishing scam

You receive an email that appears to be from your bank saying something like: “We’ve detected unusual activity on your account. To keep your account secure, please verify your details within 24 hours.”

The email includes a link to “verify your account.” The link takes you to a website that looks almost identical to your bank’s genuine website and asks you to enter your username, password and one-time security code.

However, the email and website are fake. The scammer is trying to trick you into handing over your banking credentials and security information.

How to spot a phishing scam

• You receive an unsolicited email, phone call, text message or instant message asking you to confirm or verify personal details or alerting you to suspicious activity on an account. 
• You are asked to verify a payment that has been made from your account by verifying your credit card or bank details so the bank can investigate. 
• The scammer recites your credit card number and asks you to confirm the security code. 
• The message you receive has spelling or grammatical errors and the branding is slightly different from the legitimate organisation.

Tips to protect yourself from a phishing attack

If you receive an email or message that looks like it is from a bank or trusted organisation, pause to check for any scam warning signs. Be wary of clicking links, particularly if the communication seems urgent or unusual.

Never provide your personal, banking or credit card details if you receive a call you weren’t expecting about an account. If in doubt, hang up and call the organisation directly via contact details you have found independently. 

Scams continue to evolve and grow more sophisticated in the ways they try to access your personal banking information or access your devices, so it is important to stay on guard.  

How to know if People First Bank is legitimately contacting you

People First Bank will never contact you to request your login details, security codes, card details, one-time passwords, or for you to move your money. If you receive a call claiming to be from People First Bank asking for this information, hang up and call us back on 13 11 82 so that you can be sure that you are talking to us.

How to report a scam

If you have been contacted by a scammer posing as People First Bank, or you believe that a scammer has access to your banking information, please call us ASAP on 13 11 82.

It’s also important to report any scam calls you receive to Scamwatch after you have spoken to People First Bank.

Keeping our customers’ banking safe is a top priority, which is why we have a number of measures in place to prevent phishing scams. For more information on People First Bank's anti-fraud measures, please visit our fraud and scams hub.