The Anti-Fraud Centre at the General Department of Criminal Investigation in Dubai Police has stressed the importance of not opening any electronic links or downloading unknown applications that claim to represent 'consumer protection', following repeated attempts by fraudsters to impersonate such entities in order to deceive victims and steal their money.
The Anti-Fraud Centre emphasised the need to verify access through official consumer protection channels when submitting a complaint, and to refrain from sharing banking details with any unauthorised party.
The centre reiterated the importance of public awareness regarding a fraudulent method in which scammers use electronic links leading to a fake website impersonating 'consumer protection', exploiting them to access victims' phone data through malicious remote-control applications in order to transfer funds from their accounts.
The centre explained that a victim wishing to file a complaint against a company searches for a website to submit a consumer protection complaint, ends up on one of these fake sites, and fills in their personal details — including name, email address, phone number, and the subject of the complaint.
The fraudster then contacts the victim directly, claiming to be an official employee, and recounts the details of the complaint the victim submitted through the site in order to appear credible.
"Once trust is gained, the fraudster asks the victim to download remote-control software, then instructs them to log into their bank account while the software is running. This allows the fraudster to view the phone screen, steal banking account credentials, and use them to carry out financial transfers or make unauthorised purchases," the centre added. It noted that these malicious applications used by fraudsters are designed to remotely control victims' computers and smartphones.