Police in KwaZulu-Natal have requested the public to report unauthorised R99 debit order deductions from their bank accounts.

Police spokesperson Capt Nqobile Gwala said there had been a number of media reports of people complaining about these unauthorised debit orders.

However, she said the people had not laid charges with police.

“We urge victims to ensure that they report these incidents to the police so that we can ensure that the perpetrators are brought to book.”

Fin 24 reported last month that an extensive investigation into illegal debit order scams involving the country’s major commercial banks had revealed the existence of organised crime syndicates seemingly operating on a massive scale.

It said the extensive and broad investigation, which involved the entire financial industry, the Hawks, the police and the South African Revenue Service, had uncovered that at least R1.6bn a year was being fraudulently debited from the bank accounts of ordinary South Africans.

Gwala urged the public to take care of their banking details by not responding to any texts and emails that required identification details and bank pin codes.

Police also provided other preventative measures to protect people from being scammed:

• Do not provide your online ID, password or pin to anyone and never write them down or share them;
• Do not save your Internet banking password on your desktop;
• Do not leave your computer unattended after you have entered your Internet banking password;
• Always log off or sign off at the end of a session. Avoid doing Internet banking in public areas such as Internet cafés, or on any computer that can be accessed by people you do not know;
• Change your pin and passwords frequently. Put sensible transaction limits on your accounts. Only provide your credit card details to reputable companies; and
• Never send money or give credit card or online account details to anyone you do not know and trust.