Apple iTunes fraudulent accusations: banks continue to help victims as more cases come to light

SINGAPORE: Singapore banks announced measures to help victims after a series of fraudulent Apple iTunes transactions touched dozens of account holders

Victims reported that hundreds of thousands of dollars had been erased. charged to their credit cards at banks including Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC), DBS and HSBC.

Apple Singapore, Friday, July 20, told Channel NewsAsia that it was considering the issue. The company has also highlighted its support page for customers to report any problems with purchases made on iTunes.

United Overseas Bank (UOB) told Channel NewsAsia on Sunday that it has increased its monitoring of iTunes transactions the previous week.

"When our system detected a potentially fraudulent transaction, we immediately called our client to check with them on the transaction," said UOB, adding that it would help a customer claim a refund once the fraudulent transaction is confirmed. A new card would also be issued as an extra security measure, said the UOB.

At OCBC only, there were 58 cases of fraudulent transactions in July

"In early July, we detected and examined unusual transactions on 58 cardholder accounts. have implemented the necessary countermeasures and are currently assisting cardholders involved in the debit process, "said Vincent Tan, Credit Card Manager at OCBC Bank.

DBS customers who report Unauthorized iTunes transactions will receive a temporary credit while the bank investigates the billing dispute, the bank told Channel NewsAsia.

"Banking security is our main concern and we use state-of-the-art security technology and protocols to guarantee the security of our customers' information and money, "said a spokesman for DBS." We also monitor There is no real-time credit / debit card transaction for any suspicious activity. "

Channel NewsAsia contacted HSBC and Standard Chartered for comment.

FRAUDULENT iTUNES FOR AN AMOUNT OVER $ 1,000

Since Channel NewsAsia's first report on fraudulent charges of iTunes on Sunday, social media has been more likely to share their distress, some having even been affected by transactions amounting to about $ 7,000.

She preferred to remain anonymous, telling Channel NewsAsia that iTunes transactions worth more than $ 7,000 were charged to her HSBC credit card.

She discovered the transactions the previous day after receiving an SMS notification from the bank informing her that her credit card limit was left with "less than 30 percent"

"I n & # I have no record of these unauthorized transactions as I was told on the phone, I will see it when my statement comes next month, "she said.

She adds that she was referred to a senior advisor when she contacted Apple, who told her "several times" that the company was not able to repay the disputed amount.

"It This is a case of credit card fraud, which is not due to Apple and / or iTunes, "she said, citing Apple's staff

He was also told that his credit card could have been used for online purchases other than Apple, which resulted in "Fraudulent actions," said the victim. She used her card for purchases on the Apple App Store, she said.

Sales Manager Nicholas Tan, 31, was charged more than $ 2,000 on his HSBC credit card in May. Each of the fraudulent iTunes transactions costs $ 148.98, he said.

"The bank called me to check if I had done these transactions, I was not even in Singapore," Tan said. "HSBC was quick, they noticed these transactions and called me immediately, I missed their first call, but they called me the next day to follow him," Tan said.

Another victim, Wilson Wong, 26, is currently expecting refunds worth nearly $ 2,000 after a total of 12 fraudulent iTunes transactions have occurred. billed on its OCBC debit card on July 13th.
[19659002] "Just disappointed by OCBC, they called me only when the transaction was at $ 1,900," said the singer-songwriter, who wished the bank to have it alerted earlier four days later, on July 17th. Hariz Lim recently received repayments worth more than $ 1,700 after 11 iTunes transactions were made through his OCBC debit account on July 16th. or the debit card details saved on my own iTunes account, "said Mr. Lim." Apple / iTunes was not even aware of the fraudulent transactions (in my account) until I inform them. "