Dear Customer,

Please be informed that HSBC Continental Europe (Spółka Akcyjna) Oddział w Polsce (hereinafter: HSBC in Poland) does not offer products or services to individual customers nor does it service them. If you want to report a problem related to an account kept for a natural person outside the territory of the Republic of Poland, please contact an HSBC branch in the jurisdiction in which this account has been opened.

We wish to draw your attention to the various methods used by fraudsters to obtain funds in illegitimate manner.

Fraud related to loans/advances/prepayments

In this case, fraudsters contact the victim via social media or e-mail and ask them to pay in advance for financial services that will never be provided. In many cases, fraudsters passing off as well-known financial institutions urge their victims to make even several successive payments to cover the various costs allegedly linked to the services or products being provided. Typical methods may include offering loans, credit cards, scholarships, investments with higher-than-average yield, or informing about an inheritance received. In addition, there may be attempts to obtain the PESEL number or the number of identity documents under the pretense that it is necessary to include them in the alleged agreement.

Fraud related to online purchases

The next scenario involves the fraudsters passing off as buyers who, in response to an announcement of the sale of a product at an auction or advertising service, send a written confirmation of payment. Usually, to make it look authentic, this confirmation contains a logo of a well-known financial institution and some data to convince the seller that payment for the goods has already been made. Confirmations sent by fraudsters often contain information that the payment has been processed in 97% or even 99%. In fact, the fraudster has never paid for the goods, and its purpose is merely to encourage you to ship the item.

In addition, sometimes it is not enough for the fraudsters to receive the item for which they have not paid and they are trying to fraudulently obtain money. In such a case, they may request refund of an alleged overpayment, the proof of which is the fabricated confirmation of the transfer of an amount higher than the agreed one. Certainly, you should not ship the item or refund any overpaid funds before the payment is credited to your account.

Fraud related to overpayments

In this scenario, the fraudster sends a cheque to the victim, which appears to be a genuine payment for the service or product. Normally, the amount in the cheque exceeds the amount expected by the victim and the fraudster asks for refund of the overpaid amount. When a cheque cannot be cashed, the victim must pay a full amount.

Using different methods, fraudsters can obtain valid personal and identity data such as credit card numbers, their expiry dates, the date of birth or mother’s maiden name. Such information may be used to obtain access to bank accounts or to open new credit lines.

You may minimize the risk of falling victim to such fraud by taking the following steps:

• All documents or letters received which contain the name and address of the company or personal data must be destroyed. Bank statements received by traditional mail must be abandoned, thus eliminating the sending of unnecessary documents by mail.
• A phone number must be configured serving as contact number for financial institution, as in this way you can safely identified,
• The contact number must not be provided to anyone who contacts you. HSBC never asks for a telephone number if it is the originator of a telephone call.
• If valid documents (e.g. passport) have been lost or stolen, their immediate cancellation must be considered.

Fraud related to false cheques

This type of fraud involves modification, counterfeiting or falsification of cheques written against the victim’s bank account. The following guidance will help you to avoid falling a victim to cheque frauds and to minimise such risks:

• Cheques must be verified.
• Additional information such as the account reference number must be added to them.
• Cheques must be signed by full signature, not just initials.
• Cheque stubs must be compared with the account statement.
• Discrepancies should be reported.
• Additional cheque books must be kept in a secure place.

If you fall victim to a fraud, you must report it as soon as possible to law enforcement agencies, and if you have made any payment to the perpetrators, you must immediately notify the financial institution through which you have ordered the payment.