As a customer, it is important to report any fraudulent activity that you may have experienced while engaging with our organization. Fraudulent activity can include identity theft, credit card fraud, phishing, and other scams. This document provides clear guidance and procedures for reporting fraudulent activity as a customer.

Procedures

If you believe you've made a transfer to a fraudster as part of a scam, or you suspect that your account has been subject to fraudulent/scam activity, please:

Observe and gather information

If you suspect or detect any fraudulent activity, you should observe and gather as much information as possible. This includes but is not limited to, the nature of the fraudulent activity, individuals or groups involved, supporting documentation, or evidence.

Contact Customer Support

Customers who suspect or detect fraudulent activity should contact the customer support team as soon as possible. This can be done through the organization's website, https://payowl.com/en/support or email, help@payowl.com. The customer support team will guide you through the next steps and help you report fraudulent activity.

Provide Details of the Fraudulent Activity

When reporting fraudulent activity, customers should provide as much detail as possible. This includes but is not limited to, the nature of the fraudulent activity, individuals or groups involved, supporting documentation or evidence, and any other relevant information.

Cooperate with the Investigation

The organization will investigate all reported fraudulent activities. Customers should cooperate with the investigation by providing any additional information or evidence that may be required.

Protection of Customers

The organization takes the protection of its customers seriously. Customers who report fraudulent activity in good faith will be protected from any retaliation, discrimination, or harassment.

Follow Up

After reporting the fraudulent activity, customers should follow up with the customer support team to ensure that the matter is resolved satisfactorily. If the customer is not satisfied with the outcome, they can escalate the matter to the appropriate authority.

How to recognise fraud

Criminals are using increasingly sophisticated techniques to steal money. Here at PayOwl, we constantly review our fraud and scam prevention systems, and we are continually deploying new solutions to counter the latest financial crime techniques.

You, our customers, can help prevent financial crime too and this page includes information on the most common types of fraud and tips that can help you recognise signs of financial crime.

The most common types of financial crime are:

• Authorised push payment (APP) fraud or bank transfer scams - APP fraud is when criminals trick you or use persuasion to get you to transfer money to another account. APP fraud has increased dramatically since the beginning of the pandemic.

• Card fraud - Card fraud is when criminals use stolen debit or credit card details to steal your money. There are several types of card fraud.

• Remote support or installation of software fraud - This type of fraud occurs when criminals ask you to download software, usually in the form of a mobile or desktop app that typically allows criminals to see your screen or take over your mouse, to gain access to your online or in-app account and transfer money. Fraudsters often use remote access software applications to gain control of your banking and finance applications.

• Delivery fee/Customs fraud - Scammers know we’re all addicted to shopping online and that we usually have important deliveries on the way! They’ll text you and pretend a parcel is stuck in customs, or pretend a delivery has failed, in order to persuade you to provide important personal information.

• CEO fraud - Businesses can also be the victims of fraud. CEO fraud is an increasingly popular means for criminals to persuade businesses to illicitly transfer funds. Scammers impersonate the CEO or other senior business leaders of your organisation and convince victims to make payments, again, often stating they need it urgently.

Here are some tips on what to look out for, so that you can keep your money safe:

• Never ignore in-app warnings, someone if someone is putting you under pressure, telling you to do something urgently or recommending you ignore them.

• Be suspicious of ‘too good to be true’ offers or prices

• Shop with retailers that are reputable and reliable. As a rule of thumb, their website URLs should start with 'https', not 'http'. Look for a padlock icon before the website name, indicating that the site is secured with a digital certificate.

• Read online reviews to check websites and sellers are genuine, and ask to see high value items in person or via video, as well as getting copies of documentation to ensure the seller owns the item.

• Always access the website you’re buying from by typing it into your web browser. Don’t follow links in unsolicited emails or texts.

• Remember that fraudsters may ask you to pay by bank transfer instead of card payment.

• If you get a message from PayOwl saying the payee doesn’t match, stop the transaction and investigate.

Conclusion

It is important for customers to report any fraudulent activity that they may have experienced while engaging with our organization. This document provides clear guidance and procedures for reporting fraudulent activity, protecting customers who report such activity in good faith, and ensuring that the organization can take appropriate action promptly. If you suspect or detect any fraudulent activity, please follow the procedure outlined in this document to report it immediately.