Keeping us safe online is a two-way street
Is it just me or have the spammers and crooks of this world been having a field day over the last year as we spend more and more time online? Touch wood, I had been fortunate enough to avoid responding to those “you have authorised a payment to..” or “you’ll go to jail if you don’t pay outstanding tax immediately..” emails and texts that are doing the rounds at present.
But it is clear that many, many people are being tricked into transferring funds into a new bank account “for your own security” or clicking on an innocent looking link in an official looking email.
While we have a duty to take care, the various organisations we communicate with on a daily basis also have an important role to play in keeping us safe online.
Which is why I was surprised, and perhaps a little bit shocked, to receive a call early one Friday morning from the supermarket I have been using for click and collect shopping.
I did not know initially it was the store as the number shown on my telephone was a mobile number and I let the call go to answerphone.
On playing back the message the caller said he was speaking from said store. There had, apparently, been a problem with the credit card details I had entered online when booking the shopping to be collected later that day.
This was, I should add, the same card I had used with said store for around nine months.
The caller then asked me to call him back on his mobile number and give details of an alternative credit card.
At this point I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. Me, give out credit card details to a person at the end of an unknown mobile number? Not a chance.
So I rang my bank, feeling confident they would be able to help. They couldn’t. All they would do is acknowledge that the bank was aware of a few similar problems.
What to do? After all, we wanted to eat that week. Well, I found the number for supermarket concerned and rang that rather than the mobile supplied earlier. At least I was sure of who I was speaking with!
The problem was sorted within a few minutes and I was able to collect our red wine, white wine, brandy and loaf of bread later in the day.
So, two black marks this week from IDGOM – the first to the supermarket. Why not send me an email (addresses are easily checked) asking me to go to my online account to change payment details?
The second black mark goes to my bank. Simply for being unable to help.
