What is Sim Swap Fraud ?

SIM swap fraud is a type of identity theft in which a criminal convinces a mobile phone company to transfer a victim's phone number to a SIM card that the criminal controls. This can be used to gain access to the victim's online accounts, such as email and banking, by intercepting account recovery messages sent to the phone number.

To prevent SIM swap fraud, you can take the following steps:

• Protect your personal information: Be careful about sharing your personal information online and over the phone.
• Use two-factor authentication: This can help protect your accounts even if your phone number is transferred to a criminal's SIM card.
• Monitor your accounts: Regularly check your bank and credit card statements for unauthorized transactions.
• Contact your mobile phone company: Let them know that you want to opt-in for added security features like SIM card PIN or set a SIM card swap notification feature.
• Be cautious of unsolicited phone calls or text messages: If you receive a call or text message from someone claiming to be from your mobile phone company, do not provide any personal information and hang up immediately.

To protect your mobile SIM card, you can follow these steps:

• Use a PIN code to lock your SIM card. This will prevent unauthorized access to your SIM card if your phone is lost or stolen.
• Avoid sharing your SIM card's PIN code with anyone.
• Keep your phone and SIM card in a secure place, and be careful when lending your phone to others.
• Be aware of phishing scams and unsolicited phone calls or messages asking for personal information, such as your SIM card's PIN code.
• Keep your phone's software and operating system up to date to ensure that it is protected from any known security vulnerabilities.
• Be careful about sharing your personal information online, and be wary of giving out your phone number or SIM card details to untrusted sources.
• Don't save sensitive information on your SIM card.
• Consider using a mobile security app to protect your SIM card and phone from malware and other security threats

To protect your bank account, you can follow these steps:

• Use a strong and unique password for your bank account, and avoid using easily guessable information like your name or birthdate.
• Enable two-factor authentication on your bank account, if available. This will require you to provide a code sent to your phone or email in addition to your password when logging in.
• Be cautious about clicking on links or downloading attachments from suspicious emails or text messages, as these may be phishing attempts to steal your login credentials.
• Keep your computer and mobile device secure with up-to-date anti-virus software and a firewall.
• Monitor your bank account regularly to check for any suspicious activity.
• Be careful when using public Wi-Fi to access your bank account, as these networks may not be secure.
• Be careful about sharing your personal information online, and be wary of giving out your bank account details to untrusted sources.
• Don't save sensitive information, like your account number, on your computer or mobile device.
• Consider using a virtual credit card or single use credit card number for online transactions.
• Avoid using easily guessable security questions, and consider using a password manager to store them securely.
• If you notice any suspicious activity in your account, contact your bank immediately