John Fairheart
14 November 2005, 20:06
Flashing a bank account. Is it rude?
No, but it will cost you!
The term Flashing, when used within the context of fraud, is a mechanism used to fool an unwitting victim into thinking they have been paid.
Whether you are expecting a loan from a supposed bank to pay for a barrister fee, or you are expecting a wire transfer after selling something online, maybe even your winning lottery funds have turned up.
Whatever the reason for you obtaining funds, you will have had to have provided your bank account details. These details give the fraudster a unique opportunity to create a great deal of trouble.
Here is how it could work:-
You sell something online to someone who wishes to wire transfer the money to you. You agree, and provide your banking details. The fraudster will then supposedly wire the money, and you send the goods after seeing the deposit in your account.
Here is the sting:-
The fraudster did not wire you cash from his account, he actually deposited a cheque (check) into your bank account. The bank honor the deposit after initially clearing the cheque, and add the funds to your account. Some weeks later, it will be discovered that the cheque was counterfeit, fake or even stolen, and they seize the funds back from your account. This leaves you a double victim: your goods stolen by deception, and money gone from your account. You may be under scrutiny from your banks' fraud department, or even the police as a result.
Worse, would be if you had been overpaid, and sent the balance (as instructed by the buyer) to someone else. There is no way to recover these funds, and regardless of any small print in the banking terms and conditions, the bank will NOT give you the money back again!
How can you verify the deposit:-
Simple. When you receive the deposit, you simply ask your bank. Was it a cheque deposit, or cash deposit? If the latter is true, then the money is yours. If it was a cheque... BEWARE -- FRAUD!
There are other ways in which this particular scam is operated, and sometimes the amounts dropped into accounts can be thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even into the millions of Dollars, Pounds, Euros or whatever.
No, but it will cost you!
The term Flashing, when used within the context of fraud, is a mechanism used to fool an unwitting victim into thinking they have been paid.
Whether you are expecting a loan from a supposed bank to pay for a barrister fee, or you are expecting a wire transfer after selling something online, maybe even your winning lottery funds have turned up.
Whatever the reason for you obtaining funds, you will have had to have provided your bank account details. These details give the fraudster a unique opportunity to create a great deal of trouble.
Here is how it could work:-
You sell something online to someone who wishes to wire transfer the money to you. You agree, and provide your banking details. The fraudster will then supposedly wire the money, and you send the goods after seeing the deposit in your account.
Here is the sting:-
The fraudster did not wire you cash from his account, he actually deposited a cheque (check) into your bank account. The bank honor the deposit after initially clearing the cheque, and add the funds to your account. Some weeks later, it will be discovered that the cheque was counterfeit, fake or even stolen, and they seize the funds back from your account. This leaves you a double victim: your goods stolen by deception, and money gone from your account. You may be under scrutiny from your banks' fraud department, or even the police as a result.
Worse, would be if you had been overpaid, and sent the balance (as instructed by the buyer) to someone else. There is no way to recover these funds, and regardless of any small print in the banking terms and conditions, the bank will NOT give you the money back again!
How can you verify the deposit:-
Simple. When you receive the deposit, you simply ask your bank. Was it a cheque deposit, or cash deposit? If the latter is true, then the money is yours. If it was a cheque... BEWARE -- FRAUD!
There are other ways in which this particular scam is operated, and sometimes the amounts dropped into accounts can be thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even into the millions of Dollars, Pounds, Euros or whatever.