YOUNGSTERS in Bahrain may consider themselves ‘tech savvy’ but the amount of time they spend on screen makes them prime targets for online fiends preying on their over-confidence.
They are the ones most likely to be victims of scams, a top official revealed during a cybersecurity forum.
“The misconception is that elderly people are the ones most affected by fraudsters, but in reality it is the younger generation, people in their 20s and younger,” said Interior Ministry financial crimes department head Major Mohammed Al Abdulla. “They are targeted the most because of how much time they spend using technology, such as smartphones or tablets.
“They are the ones scrolling social media the most and they are the ones who order things online the most, much more than the elderly do.
“Whether it is WhatsApp or social media, what scammers do is learn which applications young people like to use, and come up with methods to con the unsuspecting victims out of their money by utilising the app.”
Maj Al Abdulla spoke to the GDN prior to a cybersecurity forum ‘Cyber Frauds: Methods and Prevention’, held at the Abdelrahman Kanoo Cultural Centre in Riffa.
At the event, he highlighted a number of different methods that fraudsters use to rip off both local and expatriate children.
“There are a couple of very common scams that target young people in Bahrain right now,” he said. “The most prevalent is the fake prize scam, where conman call up the victim and tell them that they have won a prize that they can collect, usually it is something expensive like a video game console.
“In order to receive the non-existent prize however, the victim is told to click on a link that is sent to them. They are urged to fill out confidential banking details and, once they do, the scammers illegally withdraw money from their accounts. Of course, they will never get their so-called prize either.”
The second most common deceit, according to Maj Al Abdulla, is the ‘SMS scam’, where conmen pretend to be banks, delivery services, or platforms such as BenefitPay.
“What happens is that scammers send the victim an SMS pretending to be one of these companies,” he explained. “The message usually asks you to ‘update your personal information’ because it is either ‘outdated’ or in the case of a package, it is ‘stuck with the Custom Affairs’ for example.
“Again, a link accompanies the message, and the unsuspecting victim fills out the form on it, gives out their personal information, and then finds out that money has been taken out of their account.”
Maj Al Abdulla has some tips for youngsters to follow to identify potential scammers and protect themselves.
Maj Al Abdulla
“For starters, no employee – whether from a bank or BenefitPay – would call you and ask for an OTP or passcode,” he said. “It does not matter if they give you your full name, CPR, IBAN number, bank account number, DO NOT give them any extra details, because even with that knowledge they cannot do anything with the information without taking you on the next step.
“Secondly, look out for spelling mistakes in any messages received. These are done on purpose, more often than not, because people who do not catch these mistakes are more likely to fall for scams.
“Finally, do not click on any links, educate yourself with all the methods they use, and remember that if something is too good to be true, it probably is.”
Maj Al Abdulla also urged people to join the Financial and Cyber Crimes WhatsApp group, available in both English and Arabic, where new fraudulent methods are shared with members of the public as soon as they surface.
In order to join the group, people can go to the Instagram account @acees_bh, and click on the link in the bio.
The GDN reported last week that there have been 1,314 criminal cases related to misuse of telecommunications and 753 related to the misuse of social media over the past year. Of the social media cases, 388 involved WhatsApp, 184 were on Instagram, 54 on Snapchat, 51 on TikTok, 51 on Facebook and 25 on X, formerly known as Twitter.
People can report potential scammers to the General Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Economic and Electronic Security either by dialling 992 or by contacting them on WhatsApp at 17108108.
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