Citizen loses 10,995 dinars to an 'Oh, you' cybercrime scam

Ahmad Khamees A phone call received by a citizen born in 1959 turned into a scam and fraud case after the caller impersonated an officer in the Cybercrime Department, deceiving him into believing his bank account had been hacked. The call ended with five unauthorized deductions from his account totaling 10,995 Kuwaiti dinars, wiping out his balance.

According to a security source, the citizen reported that he received a call from an unknown person, likely of Arab nationality and speaking with a Kuwaiti accent, who identified himself as a detective officer working in cybercrime. The caller informed him that his bank account had been compromised and that he would issue a new bank card to protect his funds.

The source added that the victim told the caller his account had not been hacked, but the caller insisted that he already possessed the banking data and that his goal was to secure the account and prevent theft of the funds. He began reciting account details to verify their accuracy, which bolstered the citizen’s trust in him after the information proved correct.

However, the citizen later discovered that five unauthorized deductions had been made from his account without his knowledge or consent, amounting to 10,995 dinars, revealing that the call, which began with claims of protecting him from hacking, ended with the thief draining his entire balance.

In light of the report, the Public Prosecution ordered the incident to be registered as a felony and instructed the criminal investigation department to conduct inquiries to identify the caller, determine how the funds were accessed, and arrest those involved.

The source warned against responding to calls from individuals claiming to be bank employees or security officials who request account or card details or verification codes, urging the public not to disclose such information and to verify directly with the bank or relevant authorities when receiving such calls.