The Bank of Cyprus proposes good banking practices, in order for its customers and the public in general to avoid fraudsters, who increasingly use advanced technology and AI to create highly convincing fraud scams with the ultimate purpose of deceiving the public.

In a press release, the bank notes that fraudsters claim to be the bank, by leveraging deepfake visuals and promoting fake unique investment opportunities which look authentic. They send posts via social media and realistic unsolicited phishing emails & sms with links which redirect to fake webpages to deceive users into providing their credentials, banking and other personal details. They also contact the public through phone and social media chats trying to convince them that “you must act immediately” or that “they have a great investment opportunity”.

"While we remain committed to enhancing our fraud prevention measures, your awareness is critical in protecting yourself", the bank notes, and proposes to the public to follow some good banking practices, like only trusting the bank’s official bank sites and channel to access their accounts and obtain information on the bank’s products & services.

Moreover, it calls for its customers to avoid clicking on any links in unsolicited email messages, sms or social media posts and to forward such messages to [email protected].

The bank advises to always verify before trusting. "Always contact the Bank directly through official channels to confirm legitimacy of any message or request that they may have obtained," it urges.

Finally, the bank advices its customers to be cautious with their personal information and never share their 1bank passwords, OTP, Card details and PINS, even if someone claims to be from the bank. The bank asks its customers to cease any suspicious call immediately and report them to 800 00 800 or +357 22128000 if calling from abroad.