The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has urged users of digital financial services to remain alert to fraud and avoid sharing sensitive financial information with unauthorised persons.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, October 7, the central bank advised customers to protect information such as Mobile Money and ATM PINs, internet banking passwords, One-Time Passwords (OTPs) and verification codes.
The BoG stressed that legitimate banks, mobile money operators, payment service providers and other financial institutions would not request such information through phone calls, text messages, emails or social media.
Customers have therefore been cautioned against responding to unsolicited messages, calls, emails and online links seeking personal or financial information. They have also been urged to carefully verify investment opportunities before committing their money.
The central bank warned consumers to be particularly cautious about investment schemes promising unusually high returns with little or no risk, including “double-your-money” schemes, online Ponzi schemes and suspicious digital investment platforms.
The BoG further encouraged consumers to monitor transaction alerts, bank statements and mobile money notifications regularly to detect unauthorised transactions promptly.
It also recommended using strong, regularly updated passwords and enabling security features such as transaction alerts, biometric verification and two-factor authentication where available.
Customers were also advised not to disclose personal identification details, including Ghana Card information, account numbers and verification codes, to unauthorised persons.
Anyone who suspects they have been defrauded, notices an unauthorised transaction, experiences a SIM swap or believes their account has been compromised should report the incident immediately to their financial institution, mobile network operator or relevant service provider.
