Security

There have been reports of phone scams where individuals have received calls from telecom operator or network service provider asking them to transfer money to an unknown local or overseas account.

UOB would like to caution consumers to be vigilant when receiving unsolicited phone calls from an organisation requesting your bank account details.

UOB and our partners would never request for online banking details, such as your user ID, password, PIN or OTP over the phone, email or SMS.

While we have implemented additional security and monitoring measures to keep you safe, we remind customers to remain vigilant.

If you receive an unsolicited phone call, please call the official contact number of the organisation from which the caller claims to be before taking any further action. Fraudsters are successful when they are able to prey on unsuspecting victims who respond without performing due checks. If you are in doubt as to the legitimacy of the caller, you may seek advice from the police.

Customers can also call us at 6255 0160 to report any suspicious transactions.

What should you do to protect yourself from such phishing emails?

• Do not open or download any attachments from an unsolicited email.
• Do not click on email links or URLs within the email without verifying the sender of the email.
• Move your mouse over the email link or URL to check the actual internet address. To do this on your mobile phone, tap and hold the link to display the actual internet address. If the actual internet address looks suspicious, do not click on it.
• To access UOB’s website, always type the URL: www.uob.com.sg directly into the address bar of your browser.
• If you suspect that your account may have been compromised, please inform us immediately at 1800-2222-121 or +65-6222-2121.

Example of a phishing email

Potential victims receive phishing emails claiming to be from UOB, informing them that someone has logged into their account.

How a phishing email might work

• Potential victims would be asked to click on a link or button such as “Stop Request Now”
• This redirects them to a fake website for disclosure of confidential information (e.g. user ID, password, One-Time Passwords, etc).
• Once such confidential information is disclosed, the fraudsters would then use the information to transfer money out of the victims’ bank account.

The victims would also receive SMS alerts notifying them of the successful fund transfers to unknown payees.

Here is how a phishing email could look like.

It is important to note that this email is not from UOB.

 

Tips to protect yourself from such phishing email scams:

1. Do not click on links or buttons in such emails
   By hovering your mouse pointer over the link or button, you are able to see the actual hyperlinked internet address, which is usually a fake website’s internet address. (Where emails are read on mobile phones, pressing and holding on the link for a while would reveal the actual internet address).
2. Do not download or open any attachment in suspicious emails
3. Do not provide your confidential information over email or phone
   Please note that the Bank will never ask you for confidential information (such as your user ID, password, One-Time Password, etc) through email or phone.
4. Change password and report immediately
   If you have inadvertently provided such information, immediately login to your Internet banking account to change your password. Should you suspect that your account has been compromised, please inform the Bank immediately at 1800 222 2121

This malware is spread through phishing emails with malicious attachment. When the said malicious attachment is opened, the malware infects the customers' computers or devices.

Once customers' computers or devices are infected, the malware will attempt to steal the customers' login and authorisation credentials (such as User ID, Password, One Time Password) by altering the flow of logging on to the UOB website.

After the first login page, it will show a message "We are currently processing your information, please wait...." which does not exist in the legitimate UOB website.

Symptoms that your computer could possibly be infected with Malware

• Prompt to input your login credential multiple times even if your supplied information is correct.
• Sudden slowness in your computer and/or requests you to wait while the system is processing for an extended time.
• Unusual logon/authorisation procedures and/or re-direct to the unfamiliar website.

How can I protect against Malware?

• Always protect your computer by using an anti-virus/anti-malware software and keep it updated with the latest anti-virus. Scan your computers regularly.
• Do not download or open attachments in suspicious emails.
• Never reply to unsolicited emails.
• Avoid accessing unknown and unsecured websites.
• If you suspect that your computer has been infected by malware, please scan your computer with latest anti-virus/anti-malware software and refrain from using banking websites until your computer is cleaned.
• Check your last login and transaction history regularly for any abnormal transactions.
  
  

UOB would like to assure you that our internet banking systems are secure. Please contact UOB helpline immediately, if you notice unknown transactions appearing on your account.

Please be assured that UOB's Internet and Mobile Banking systems are not affected by the OpenSSL bug.

UOB would like to use this opportunity to encourage our customers to adopt the following best practices to safeguard their passwords for a safe and secure online banking experience. Customers should:

1. Use a different username and password for their online banking accounts from other non-banking related accounts.
2. Select a password that is at least eight characters long, contains alphanumeric characters and does not repeat any character.
3. Change their passwords regularly, at least once every three months.
4. Not reveal their account username or password to anyone.
5. Disable the “Auto Complete” function on the browser to avoid theft of information.

If you encounter any suspicious activities in relation to your account(s), please contact us at 1800 222 2121.