The number of reported SIM-swap fraud incidents in South Africa has doubled in the past year, according to cybersecurity experts from Kaspersky.
SIM-swap fraud happens when someone convinces your mobile operator to switch your phone number over to a SIM card that a criminal possesses. In some cases, there are carrier’s employees working together with criminals.
By diverting your incoming SMS messages, scammers can easily complete the text-based two-factor authentication checks that protect your most sensitive accounts in financial services, social networks, webmail services and instant messengers.
“Despite financial inclusion services prospering, the flip side to this is that it opens up a world of opportunities to cybercriminals and fraudsters who are using the convenience a mobile phone offers to exploit and poke holes in a
Source: This is how much money South Africans are losing to SIM-swap fraud
