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Citibank warns of scam e-mail messages designed to hack into computers

DUBAI - Beware! A scam e-mail from Citibank group advising all bank users to enter their full ATM card and pin number is doing the rounds in the UAE.

Two mails - appearing as Citibank and Citicards e-mail verifications - are being sent to Citibank customers at random. The scam e-mail informs Citibank account holders that the mail is being sent to them for their own protection and for verification of email addresses of Citibank customers.

Confirming that the mail was a scam, spokesperson from the Citibank warned, "These messages quoted are scam e-mails sent to our customers randomly every few months.

"This is a typical fraudulent case which we, along with many other banks, fall victim to every once in a while. Citibank has no connection to these mesaages whatsoever. We are constantly warning our customers about similar activities and we ask them to report any suspicious mail to us for verification and for protection. These scam messages are designed to hack into customers' accounts, he said.

Speaking to Khaleej Times a Citibank customer, Deepa Shah said, "I was a little suspicious of the mail because it was spelt very poorly. Besides, it asked for my ATM number as well as my PIN number which I use on my local ATM machine. This raised doubts in my mind and I called Citibank officials who warned me against even opening the mail."

The mail reads, "Dear..... Citibank .... .... User...., This email.... was sent by the Citicard servers to verify ....your e-mail addres. You must complete this process by clicking on the...link below and entering in the little window your Citibank ATM full card number and Pin that you use in the local Atm machine. That is donne for Your protection -C- because some of our members no longer have access to their e-Mail addresses and we must verify it."

The Citibank spokesperson also said, "We are proactive in fighting this phenomenon as we do have a hands-on anti-Fraud Unit which, among other tasks, traces these scams and reports them to the relevant authorities and warns customers not to fall victims to them."