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  • Report:  #97517

Complaint Review: Citibank

Citibank ripoff, fraud, Scam, Spam I feel this is an unsafe product Internet

  • Reported By:
    Dickinson Center New York
  • Submitted:
    Sat, July 03, 2004
  • Updated:
    Sun, July 04, 2004
  • Citibank
    citisafe@citibank.com
    Internet
    U.S.A.
  • Phone:
  • Category:

This company (Citibank) has been emailing me 3-4 times in the past month saying that my account needs to be verified. I feel this is an unsafe product.

Today, I received an email saying that I needed to verify my account because someone has been trying to get into my account with pin numbers.

They have a link in the email to click on that only asks for your account number and pin number and that is all (for verification purposes).

This is clearly fraudulent and I am going to be reporting them to my local authorities!!

Charleen
New York, New York
U.S.A.

4 Updates & Rebuttals


Linda

San Diego,
California,
U.S.A.

Same Thing With Chase Manhattan

#5Consumer Comment

Sun, July 04, 2004

There was a notation on the Chase Manhattan site warning account holders to beware of the same scam, so it isn't just Citibank. It seems to be wide spread, so we all need to use caution when dealing with online accounts. Always go to the web site directly, never through a link in an email.


Mike

Radford,
Virginia,
U.S.A.

Citibank didn't send these e-mails, independent scammers did.

#5Consumer Suggestion

Sun, July 04, 2004

They send them blindly to millions of people using spam techniques. Since Citibank is a major national bank, they're hoping the e-mail will reach a few actual customers who fall for it. All major national banks have been targeted.

If you go to www.citibank.com, there is a "beware of Fraudulent e-mails" link that further explains the situation.

The message is designed to look official. The link takes you to the scammer's site, not the real bank site. The scam site is either a copy of the bank's page, or it loads the actual bank page as a pop-up window, with a small window asking for your information. The link in the e-mail is deceptively coded so it appears that it will go to the official bank site.

When accessing your bank online, always type the address in the address bar of your browser to be sure you are getting the real bank site. Do not click on links in e-mails.

If you entered account information, it was transmitted to the scammers who may use it for fraudulent charges. Contact the bank immediately if you did.

A bank will NEVER ask for your card's PIN number except when you use it at an ATM or point of sale device. This is a dead giveaway that you are not dealing with the real bank. If it is the real bank, they know the PIN number better than you do.


Mike

Radford,
Virginia,
U.S.A.

Citibank didn't send these e-mails, independent scammers did.

#5Consumer Suggestion

Sun, July 04, 2004

They send them blindly to millions of people using spam techniques. Since Citibank is a major national bank, they're hoping the e-mail will reach a few actual customers who fall for it. All major national banks have been targeted.

If you go to www.citibank.com, there is a "beware of Fraudulent e-mails" link that further explains the situation.

The message is designed to look official. The link takes you to the scammer's site, not the real bank site. The scam site is either a copy of the bank's page, or it loads the actual bank page as a pop-up window, with a small window asking for your information. The link in the e-mail is deceptively coded so it appears that it will go to the official bank site.

When accessing your bank online, always type the address in the address bar of your browser to be sure you are getting the real bank site. Do not click on links in e-mails.

If you entered account information, it was transmitted to the scammers who may use it for fraudulent charges. Contact the bank immediately if you did.

A bank will NEVER ask for your card's PIN number except when you use it at an ATM or point of sale device. This is a dead giveaway that you are not dealing with the real bank. If it is the real bank, they know the PIN number better than you do.


Mike

Radford,
Virginia,
U.S.A.

Citibank didn't send these e-mails, independent scammers did.

#5Consumer Suggestion

Sun, July 04, 2004

They send them blindly to millions of people using spam techniques. Since Citibank is a major national bank, they're hoping the e-mail will reach a few actual customers who fall for it. All major national banks have been targeted.

If you go to www.citibank.com, there is a "beware of Fraudulent e-mails" link that further explains the situation.

The message is designed to look official. The link takes you to the scammer's site, not the real bank site. The scam site is either a copy of the bank's page, or it loads the actual bank page as a pop-up window, with a small window asking for your information. The link in the e-mail is deceptively coded so it appears that it will go to the official bank site.

When accessing your bank online, always type the address in the address bar of your browser to be sure you are getting the real bank site. Do not click on links in e-mails.

If you entered account information, it was transmitted to the scammers who may use it for fraudulent charges. Contact the bank immediately if you did.

A bank will NEVER ask for your card's PIN number except when you use it at an ATM or point of sale device. This is a dead giveaway that you are not dealing with the real bank. If it is the real bank, they know the PIN number better than you do.

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