Mondays are not good days for stokvel deposits - SABRIC warns

Mondays and month end are the riskiest times to make stokvel money deposits, the South African Banking Risk Information Centre has warned.

Sabric has urged South Africans to be extra vigilant and cautious,as robberies and cyber crimes are expected to escalate ahead of the festive season.

“Associated robberies where criminals follow a victim after a withdrawal at an ATM or from the bank remain rife, as criminals know that at this time of the year, people receive their stokvel payouts and bonuses.

“We therefore urge bank clients to avoid carrying large amounts of cash and use alternate safer ways to transact,” said Kalyani Pillay, Sabric’s CEO.

She said stokvel club members should refrain from making large deposits on high-risk days.

Pillay said bank clients also still fell victim at ATM’s where criminals preyed on them while carrying out transactions.

“Sabric urges bank clients not to accept assistance from anyone - even if they purport to be bank staff.

“Criminals are masters at social engineering and just know how to exploit human vulnerabilities to perpetuate crimes, particularly over the festive season when they tend to let their guard downs,” said Pillay.

Pillay also urged consumers not to click on links or icons in unsolicited emails or SMSs because of phishing scams. “We continue to stress that as a bank client, you are your money’s best protection...”