The Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA) warns about fraudsters who make unsolicited phone calls in which they claim to be FMA employees and request account details or money to be transferred to ensure that the threat of their accounts being blocked is averted. Currently such calls frequently claim that there are outstanding debts or amounts due in relation to an online lottery prize draw, for which reason the account of the party being called is required to be blocked. The FMA has apparently decided to take action against this, and is taking measures against the blocking of accounts, but in order to do so, all account details, including security codes like PINs or TANs are required to be given. Sometimes they even request that direct transfers are made to an account. The phone call often appears to have been made from an FMA telephone number (+43 (0)1 24959) and this number appears on the display.
The FMA warns: this kind of practice can only be an attempted fraud!
The FMA will never request account details over the phone or by e-mail from private persons, and never takes official measures by telephone.
The FMA advises:
- terminate such calls immediately by simply hanging up.
- In the case of an unsolicited telephone call from a person who claims to be an FMA employee, never provide any account information, and never transfer money where instructed to do so over the phone.
- The FMA requests all persons who have received such calls to contact it immediately (Tel.: +43 (0)1 24959 – 5555 or via the contact form on the FMA website https://webhost.fma.gv.at/MailRequests/Request)
Journalists may address further enquiries to:
Klaus Grubelnik (FMA Media Spokesperson)
+43/(0)1/24959-5106
+43/(0)676/882 49 516