The world of retail and finance has probably never been more closely linked. It is simple to make a purchase for an item online or over the phone. Contacting one’s bank or building society used to be set around the branch system and their opening hours. Now, with mobile banking apps, online banking and telephone banking, our financial services are on tap 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
The only issue with this accessibility is that it also opens up the chance to be scammed seven days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Unfortunately, the increase in online fraud has seen a considerable spike. This is especially true when it comes to booking holidays. As many of us seek to escape from our homes, after the end of COVID, the increase of people looking for cheap last-minute deals has shot up. The requirement for a deposit opens the customer up to possible fraudulent activity.
As banks do not have the scale of branches, and some are entirely online in the first place, they need to check that the person calling is the actual account holder. This is why many employ a KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER system, like those from w2.
Whilst it can be annoying to have to remember passwords and answer account-specific questions, it should be in the back of your mind that the bank is only doing this to protect you at the end of the day.
