Ways to identify a fake bill received by email
How to identify a fake bill received by email?
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Have you ever identified a fake bill received by email? It's very likely that you have.
Even with the arrival of Pix, boletos continue to be one of the most widely used payment methods by Brazilians. And there are so many boletos circulating around that scammers take advantage of people's lack of attention to send fake documents.
But after all, how do you know if the bill you received is real or not? What precautions should you take to avoid falling for online scams?
To find out how to protect yourself, read the article until the end!
How does the fraudulent ticket work?
The fraudulent bill looks very similar to a legitimate bill.
The document has a payment value, barcode and can be paid at bank branches, lottery outlets or through the bank's app.
Several criminals use sophisticated technologies to carry out such scams.
A bill that arrives by email without you having purchased anything is easy to identify. However, a bill that arrives to you for a bill that you need to pay or for something that you have purchased, and which contains the invoice number, may have been fraudulent.
The systems intercept genuine bills and make small changes so that the payment is directed to the scammer's or third party's account.
In other words, the store where you made the purchase will not receive the payment, and the customer, who believes they made the payment correctly, will not receive the product.
What are the main signs to identify a fake bill received by email?
The fake bill scam is unfortunately becoming increasingly sophisticated.
However, there are some signs that can help you identify it before you make the payment. These include:
1. Barcode
You can analyze some peculiar characteristics in fake bills that can be verified by those who are in doubt as to whether the document is legitimate..
In fact, this is one of the most important aspects of a possible fraudulent ticket.
This is because it usually has flaws in the barcode, such as spaces where there shouldn't be.
These errors can cause the sensors to fail to read the barcode, requiring manual entry of the altered code.
Also, check if the last digits of the barcode actually correspond to the amount that must be paid. If they are different, it means that the bill is fake.
It is also necessary to check whether the first digits of the barcode match the code of the bank issuing the bill. For example, the code for Caixa Econômica Federal is 104.
If the charge is a recurring bill, such as internet, electricity or school fees, be even more suspicious of any changes.
2. Beneficiary unknown
Before making any type of payment, check all the issuer's information.
Check the name of the person or company who will receive the payment.
Some scammers even manage to mask the name of the issuing company. Even so, this is something important to keep an eye on.
Compare the name that appears on the invoice with that of the company responsible. Also check whether the CNPJ of the issuer is true in the Federal Revenue Service smartphone app and in the lists published by Procon.
3. Payment amount
The payment amount is another thing you should keep an eye on to avoid falling for a fraudulent bill scam.
Many times, it does not correspond to the value indicated in the store where the consumer made the purchase.
However, this does not mean that if the payment amount matches, it is real.
To really be sure, you need to pay attention to all factors.
Other tips to avoid falling for the fake bill scam
In addition to analyzing some characteristic factors that alert you to the risk of the bill being fake, there are also other things you can do to protect yourself, such as:
Request PDF invoices
According to Febraban, most scammers use viruses to alter payment slips when the victim prints the document.
And this is one of the reasons why you should be suspicious of bills that do not arrive in your email in a PDF file.
In other words, the ideal is that you ask the issuer to send the bill in a file of this type, as this makes it more difficult for the document to be altered.
Cybercriminals who use viruses to make changes to bills change the account details to which the money will be sent.
Therefore, when the consumer prints the bill, the virus goes into action. Therefore, try to prioritize digital payments.
Give preference to direct debit
Recurring bills, such as those for your internet plan or streaming subscriptions, can be paid via direct debit, a scheduled bill payment.
Basically, it works like this: the customer registers basic accounts and, every month, on the defined date, the bank debits the amount from your account automatically.
This feature is an interesting way to avoid receiving fake bills.
Issue bills directly on the company website
Some companies do not send invoices by email.
So, if you receive this document, go to the company's website and check if there are any pending issues in your name.
If you really do, issue another ticket directly on the website.
Pay attention to data and Portuguese errors
In addition to checking the main information, fake bills may contain typing errors that, at first, do not attract much attention.
In fact, it is quite common for these errors to appear on fraudulent bills.
One thing you can do is analyze whether there are any missing letters in a sentence or whether there are any spelling errors.
All of this could be a sign that the bill is not legitimate.
Conclusion
Cybercriminals are always creating new ways to carry out scams and steal data from victims.
Therefore, it is important that you know the main ways to identify a fake bill received by email.
If you have analyzed the invoice and realized that it is indeed fake, contact the company to report it. This will make it easier for them to fight fraudsters.
